SAMUDRA Monograph
Artisanal Fisheries in Brazil
Antonio Carlos Diegues
International Collective in Support of Fishworkers
www.icsf.net
About the Author
Antonio Carlos Diegues an anthropologist and lecturer at
the University of São Paulo, Brazil, is a Member of ICSF.
SAMUDRA Monograph
Artisanal Fisheries in Brazil
Antonio Carlos Diegues
International Collective in Support of Fishworkers
www.icsf.net
Contents
INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................
1.
1
NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS AND THE CULTURAL
DIVERSITY OF THE ARTISANAL FISHWORKERS ....................
1.1 Life Support Systems Along the Coast ..............................................
1.2 Degradation of the Coastal Ecosystems and
Its Impact on Artisanal Fishing ............................................................
9
2.
FISHERIES IN BRAZIL ............................................................................
2.1 A Brief History.......................................................................................
2.2 Fisheries Production ..............................................................................
13
13
14
3.
FISH MARKETING AND PROCESSING ...........................................
3.1 The Market ..............................................................................................
3.2 The Processing Industry ........................................................................
18
18
19
4.
FISH PRODUCTION SYSTEMS ............................................................
21
5.
LABOUR FORCE AND TECHNOLOGY ...........................................
27
6.
ORGANIZATION OF ARTISANAL FISHING
AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL .................................................................
6.1 Northern Region (from Amapá to Piaui State borders).................
6.2 Northeastern Region .............................................................................
6.3 Southeastern/Southern Region ............................................................
28
29
31
34
7.
SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF THE
ARTISANAL FISHWORKERS .................................................................
7.1 Artisanal Fishing Institutions .................................................................
7.2 The Role of Women .............................................................................
36
36
37
8.
COASTAL COMMUNITIES, TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE
AND MANAGEMENT ..............................................................................
8.1 The Importance of Traditional Knowledge of
Artisanal Fishermen ...............................................................................
8.2 Social and Cultural Characteristics of the Knowledge ....................
8.3 Symbolic Aspects of the Social Appropriation of the Sea ............
8.4 Transmission of Local Knowledge ....................................................
40
43
44
49
THE TRADITIONAL APPROPRIATION OF THE MARINE
ENVIRONMENT: SPACE AND SEA TERRITORIALITY ...........
50
9.
3
5
40
9.1 Examples of Sea Tenure and Traditional Management Schemes
on the Brazilian Coast ............................................................................
9.2 Threats to Traditional Management ....................................................
10.
11.
52
55
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND INSTITUTIONAL
ARRANGEMENTS FOR COASTAL MANAGEMENT ..................
10.1 The Role of the State, Non-governmental Organizations
and Local Institutions in Coastal Management. ................................
10.2 The Brazilian Coastal Area Management Programme ....................
10.3 Coastal Marine Protected Areas: Marine Extractive Reserves .......
10.4 Local Experiences in Community Coastal Management ................
59
60
61
64
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: THE NEED FOR
ALTERNATIVE POLICIES AND STRATEGIES ...............................
66
Bibliography
...............................................................................................................
58
70
List of Tables
Table 1:
Total Yield of Fish/Year: Marine Fishing and
Freshwater Fishing, 1960-1999 ............................................................
15
Table 2:
Industrial Units in the Major States .....................................................
19
Table 3:
Lists the Main Species Captured by Means of Artisanal
and Industrial Fishing in the Four Coastal Regions of Brazil ........
23
Table 4:
Maritime Industrial and Artisanal Fish Production ..........................
25
Table 5:
Contribution of Artisanal and Industrial
Catches Regionwise (1980-1995) .........................................................
25
Table 6:
Number of Fishworkers Associated with the
Guilds Regionwise (1967-2000) ..........................................................
27
List of Figures
Figure 1
....................................................................................................................
3
Figure 2: Mangroves Along the Brazilian Coast ................................................
6
Figure 3: Levels of Degradation of Estuarine Ecosystems in Brazil ............
10
Figure 4: Relationship Between Marine Artisanal/
Industrial Production by Region ..........................................................
28
Figure 5
63
...................................................................................................................
Abbreviations
BNDES
CIRM
CNPT
CONAMA
CONAPACH
DPA
EEZ
EMBRATUR
ENGOs
FAO
IBAMA
MONAPE
MPAs
NGOs
NUPAUB
PEP
PESCART
PLANTUR
PRODETUR
SEMA
SINPESCA
SUDEPE
UNCED
UNCLOS
WWF
Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social
(National Bank for Social and Economic Development)
Inter-ministerial Commission for the Resources of the sea
Centro Nacional de Pesquisa de Trigo (National Council of
Traditional Populations)
National Commission for the Environment
Confederación Nacional de Pescadores Artesanales de Chile
Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture
exclusive economic zone
Instituto Brasileiro de Turismo (Brazilian Agency for Tourism)
environmental NGOs
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Brazilian Institute for Environment and Renewable Resources
Movimento Nacional de Pescadores
marine protected areas
non-governmental organizations
Núcleo de Apoio à Pesquisa Sobre Populações Humanas em
Áreas Úmi das Brasileiras
Professional Education Programme
Plano de Assistencia a Pesca Artesanal (Assistance Programme
for Artisanal Fishing)
National Plan for Tourism
Programme for the Development of Tourism
Secretaria Especial do Meio Ambiente (Special Secretariat for the
Environment)
Sindicato da Industria de Pesca dos Estados do Pará e Amapá
Superintendent for the Bureau for the Development of Fishing
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
World Wide Fund for Nature
Artisanal Fisheries in Brazil
INTRODUCTION
T
h e interest in artisanal fishing has increased of late, both in
governmental as well as academic bodies, for many reasons. Among
those worth mentioning are: the little success that the governmental
policy for the development of the fisheries sector in Brazil has enjoyed, focusing,
as it does, almost exclusively on industrial fisheries; the growing recognition
of the importance of artisanal fishworkers who, even without the
government’s help, continue to supply the local and regional markets with
their yield; the innumerable pressures that the artisanal fishworker communities
have been suffering of late, owing to the expansion of the interests of the
real-estate and tourism sector and environmental degradation, factors which
many a time force the artisanal fishermen to move to cities, having lost their
land; the coverage given to these conflicts by the press; the recent political
liberalization in Brazil, after the fall of the military regime (1964 to 1984),
which allowed the exploited and forgotten groups of society to express
themselves more freely, especially in defence of their rights and aspirations in
the Constituent National Assembly; the work carried out by non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), in particular, the Catholic Church, through the activities
of the Pastoral da Pesca, mainly in the north and northeastern States, and the
birth, in 1989, of the national fishers’ organization, Movimento Nacional de
Pescadores (MONAPE).
In spite of these new factors, the development of artisanal fisheries still poses
a great challenge because of the lack of policies, strategies and concrete
experiences that would lead to a sustained development of fish production,
the betterment of the living conditions of the fishworker communities, better
organization, and so on. On the contrary, there is a continuous worsening of
the problems affecting production by the artisanal fisheries sector, owing as
much to objective factors (environmental degradation, the endangering and
destruction of natural resources, and so on) as to the ineffectiveness of the
government’s strategies in overcoming the obstacles that impede the sustained
development of the artisanal fishworker communities in the Brazilian coast.
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The situation has turned much more serious ever since the shifting, after 1989,
of policymaking for fisheries from the hands of the Superintendence for
Fisheries Development (SUDEPE) to the Brazilian Institute for the
Environment (IBAMA). As IBAMA solely concentrates on environmental
issues, (environmental legislation, law reinforcement), there is no interest
whatsoever in the sustained development of the artisanal fishworker
communities. At this juncture, in Brazil, there does not exist any specific plan
or policy aimed at the sustainable development of artisanal fishing.
In 1998, the government shifted a large part of the responsibilities of the
fisheries sector from IBAMA to the Ministry of Agriculture, constituting the
Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture (DPA), leading to duplication of
responsibility and thus more confusion in the sector. The new DPA is under
the influence of the industrial fisheries sector, and is mainly concerned with
the leasing of foreign boats for tuna fishing, ignoring important aspects like
the establishment of a new fishing policy.
Besides attempting an analysis of the situation of artisanal fisheries, this study
intends to put forth to NGOs and regional and national organizations of
artisanal fishworkers, some alternative strategies for the development of the
sector.
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1. NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS AND THE CULTURAL
DIVERSITY OF THE ARTISANAL FISHWORKERS
Artisanal fishing is practised in a variety of ecosystems that greatly influence
the way fishing activities are organized. Sea currents, winds, tides, waves,
coastal vegetation, fauna and flora, and, particularly, ecological cycles are
important elements that are taken into consideration by artisanal fishermen
in order to organize their fishing activities.
The Brazilian coast is located between latitude 4°52’45"N and 33°45’10s”S
and is approximately 7,408 km long, presenting a variety of coastal and marine
ecosystems such as dunes, reefs, bays,
estuaries, lagoons, mangroves and cliffs.
There are coastal plains formed by sand
deposition of the Quaternary Period,
and mangrove areas in the north and
northeast regions, where the tertiary
formation reaches the sea. In the
southeast, the pre-Cambrian structure
of the “Serra do Mar” almost reaches
the coastline, creating cliffs and small
bays.
Brazil’s continental platform is the
continuation of the continental mass
directed towards the ocean. The width
varies, being wider in the north of the
Figure 1
country, becoming narrower in the
northeast, and wider again in the southeast and southern region.
There are three oceanic systems affecting the Brazilian coast: the Southern
Equatorial Current reaches the coast at 5°S going northward. The States of
Maranhão, Pará and Amazonas on the northern coast are affected by the
Northern Equatorial Current and are also areas with a high tidal range. The
Brazilian Current affects most of the Brazilian coastline between 25°S and
5°S. The southern of Brazil’s coast is affected by the Malvinas Current, which
travels from the southern part of the continent up to 30°S (Figure 1).
Tidal ranges become smaller from north to south, with values up to 7 m in the
north (São Luís, Maranhão) to less than 1 m in the south (Imbituba, Santa
Catarina). The region includes a diverse range of coastal formations, from the
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intertropical realm in the Amazonian region, to the tropical realms in the north
and northeast of Brazil, to the temperate marine areas of the south.
The great size of Brazil allows for considerable diversity of coastal exposure
and geomorphologic development. There are three principal portions of the
shore. The first is the area in the north that is influenced by the Amazon River
and its sediments; the second is the narrow coastal margin fringing the huge
Brazilian Shield, creating an escarpment nearly adjacent to the ocean; the
third is the southern area, where considerable quantities of sediments have
accumulated to provide a barrier island formation.
The mouth of the Amazon River is a great estuary stretching for hundreds of
kilometres inland. Large quantities of sand and especially silt and clay are
discharged by the river and accumulate along the shore margins. From the
border with Surinam eastward to the Baía de São Marcos, the fine-grained
sediments blanket the shoreline and are cloaked with mangrove. East of the
Baía de São Marcos, the shoreline begins to be characterized by sandy beaches
lying before low hills. The sand beaches are interspersed with mangrove stands.
Beginning in Rio Grande do Norte and continuing southward to the coastal
margin of Alagoas State, the beach zone is severely attenuated. The dry climate
and the short drainage systems limit the transport of sediment to the ocean
margin. This portion of Brazil is bordered by fairly extensive coral reef
formations.
South of Recife, the coast is cliffed. The combination of cliffed coast and the
presence of coral reef extend for about 500 km. Sandy beach backed by an
escarpment begins near the Alagoas-Sergipe border and continues south to
the State of Rio Grande do Sul. The beach often broadens in large curvilinear
embayments, and there may be local mangrove stands, beach ridges and deltaic
buildout. In the State of Paraná there is an extensive area of beach ridge
development. The beach ridges attain elevations of 10 m in their interior
location and gradually decrease to elevations of 2-3 m near the shore.
The coastal margin of the State of Rio Grande do Sul is distinct from the rest
of Brazil, consisting of a classic barrier island-lagoon sequence. Broad sandy
beaches extend along the coast for 640 km and incorporate wide beach ridge
systems and large coastal dunes reaching 25 m in elevation. The northern
margin of this coastal plain comes against a terrace surface with elevations of
15 m.
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1.1
LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS ALONG THE COAST
There are a large variety of inshore and coastal ecosystems, in which diverse
communities of artisanal fishworkers live and work. Thus, at the southern
end of the country, there are artisanal fishermen, who are descendants of the
Azorian migrants who developed techniques and systems suited to a jagged
coastline, with many islands, bays and lagoons. In the southeastern region are
the caiçaras, descendants of the Portuguese colonizers, natives and blacks who
combine small-scale fishing with agriculture. In the northeast, the raft
fishermen (jangadeiros) who use a specialized raft adapted to beaches without
piers, known as the jangada. In the northern end are the praieros, fishers who
developed a large variety of boats suited especially to a coast with fluctuating
tide conditions.
The Brazilian coast presents a variety of ecosystems and habitats. The most
relevant are:
Coral Reefs
The distribution of coral reefs in the South Atlantic is limited to tropical
areas along the coastline and offshore islands of Brazil. The coral fauna has
long been considered of interest on account of its high proportion of endemic
species. Some 3,000 km of coast have reefs, although not all of these are true
coral reefs. Ten of the 18 hermatypic coral species known from Brazil are
endemic.
Two main coral reef formations may be identified on the Brazilian coast. The
first is Grupo Recife do Cabo São Roque that unfolds from Cabo de São
Roque until Natal in Rio Grande do Norte State, along which are the Fernando
de Noronha archipelago and the Rocas atoll. The second is the assemblage of
coral reefs situated in the Bahia State’s south coast (the Abrolhos archipelago),
which is the richest and most developed coral reef formation in the region. In
addition to these main formations, coral reefs also occur between Natal and
the São Francisco river mouth and on the latitude of Salvador Bahia (both
usually associated with calcareous reefs).
The northeast coast formations are rocky calcareous outcroppings forming
reefs and hence differ from the coral reef formations such as those of the
Abrolhos archipelago. Coral reefs are important habitats where artisanal
fishermen work.
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Mangroves/Estuaries
These ecosystems extend almost
along the entire coast of Brazil,
from Oiapoque (Amapá) to
Laguna (Santa Catarina),
occupying an area of about
25,000 sq km. The northern limit
of mangroves on the American
continent is found in Florida (US),
and extends to Santa Catarina
State in southern Brazil. The most
extensive areas of mangrove are
associated with the mouth of the
Amazon River in the north of
Brazil, and well-developed
communities extend from the
northern boundary of the region
to the State of Piauí. Less
extensive areas of mangrove are
present along the coast until
saltmarshes become dominant in
the States of Santa Catarina and
Figure 2: Mangroves Along the
Brazilian Coast
Rio Grande do Sul. Low stands of
Avicennia schaueriana and Rhizophora mangle terminate at Florianópolis
(27’3O’S), but Laguncularia racemosa extends southward to the poleward limit
of mangrove at the mouth of the Araranguá River (290S) (Figure 2).
The main areas of higher productivity are the estuarine and coastal habitats,
which receive larger amounts of nutrients from continental runoff. These
ecosystems and habitats present a large variety of flora and fauna that sustain
a variety of economic activities. Birds, fish, crustacea, molluscs, mammals
are abundant in these habitats and some of them are already endangered,
including (along Belém coast) Eudocimus ruber (guará), Phoenicopterus ruber
(flamingo), Trichechus inungis (Amazonian manatee), Procyon cancrivorous (crabeating racoon) and Dermochelys coriacea (trunk turtle); (along the Amapá coast)
Dendrocygna autnmnalis (marreca) and Chelonia mydas (green turtle); (Maranhão
coast) Har pia harpya (harpy eagle), Aratinga garoupa (golden paroquet),
Porphyrula martinica (rail), Alouatta fusca (howling monkey) and Tricherus Manatus
(manatee); (on Mucuri estuary) Falco peregrinus (Peregrine falcon) and Ara
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ararauna (Canindé macaw); (on Linhares grassy marshers) Crypturellus noctivagus
(zaeble red-footed tinamou), Myrmecophagus tridactyla (great anteater), Lutra
enudris (otter) and Dermocheluys coriacea (trunk turtle); (on Iguape-Paranaguá
estuary) Bubo virginianus (jacurutu), Cebus apella (macaco-prego) and Tapirus
terrestris (lowland tapirs).
Some fish species are being severely overfished, in particular, shrimps (Penaeus
schmitti, brasiliensis, paulensis, Panulirus argus) and P. laevicauda (lobsters),
Bachyplatytoma vaillati (piramutaba), Sardinella brasiliensis (sardines) and several
species of mangrove crabs.
Although these ecosystems are protected by law, they are threatened by
urbanization projects and, more recently, by the construction of ponds for
shrimp cultivation, particularly in the northeast.
Coastal lagoons
Coastal lagoons are bodies of water separated from the ocean by sandbars.
Tropical lagoons can have varying degrees of salinity due to rainfall. They
have an elongated shape, generally narrow along their principal axis, which is
parallel to the coast. Sandbars (restingas), reefs and raised terraces formed by
fluvial and marine sediment accumulation as well as beaches, contribute to
the formation of lagoons. Examples are Feia, Araruama, Saquarema, Maricá,
Sepetiba (in the State of Rio de Janeiro), Roteiro, Jequiá, (in Alagoas), and
Mirim and Tramandaí (in Rio Grande do Sul). Dos Patos lagoon in southern
Brazil is one of the most important centre for artisanal fisheries in Brazil.
Barrier Islands
Barrier islands are stretches of sand deposited in parallel to the coast and
created by the dynamic of ocean waters. These deposits occur when the coast
forms a headland or cape, which often borders a series of small lakes. They
are common in the southern coastline of the State of Bahia and Rio Grande
do Sul. The main Brazilian restingas are Ilha Comprida (São Paulo) and
Marambaia. (Rio de Janeiro).
Other Coastal Wetlands and Saltmarsh
In Brazil, tidal marshes occur as a pioneer community and as a secondary
formation in disturbed areas within mangrove woods along the coast. Tidal
marshes become prevalent on the southern coast of Santa Catarina and Rio
Grande do Sul, where extensive saltmarsh formations are found, the most
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important being associated with the Patos, Mirim and Mangueira lagoons in
Rio Grande do Sul. Saltmarshes are found in the following locations in Brazil:
the bays of Paranaguá and Guaratuba (Paraná), the Lagoa de Conceição (Santa
Catarina) and principally, the coastal lakes in the southern region such as the
Patos, Peixes, Mirim and Mangueira lakes.
Tidal flats
Tidal flats are low littoral coastal areas that are covered by the tides and are
of great ecological importance. Examples are Marituba (Alagoas) and Marajó
(Pará).
Beaches, Dunes, Cliffs
The best-developed beaches and dunes are found on the coast of Brazil. In
the north, much of the shoreline is formed by sandy beaches interspersed
with mangroves lying before low hills. Sandy beaches continue from Alagoas
State to the south, where large dunes and barrier island formations occur.
Islands and Submerged Banks
The Brazilian coast has a variety of large islands such as Marajó, at the mouth
of the Amazon; São Luís, in Maranhão; Ilha Bela and Ilha do Cardoso, in São
Paulo; Ilha Grande, in Rio de Janeiro; and Santa Catarina, in the State of
Santa Catarina. There are also some oceanic islands and archipelagos.
Atol das Rocas lies about 200 km northeast of the coast of Rio Grande do
Norte State. The atoll is an almost circular reef possibly lying on the same
submarine shelf (the platform of the Rio Grande do Norte) as Fernando de
Noronha. This is a volcanic archipelago consisting of a principal island of 17
sq km and 18 islets of varying sizes. The archipelago lies 350 km northeast of
Cabo de São Roque and has a similar flora and fauna to the Atol das Rocas.
The islands of São Pedro and São Paulo (St. Paul’s Rocks) are situated in the
Atlantic about 500 km northeast of Fernando de Noronha.
Sand Barriers (Restingas)
Restingas are found along the Brazilian coast in Marambaia (Rio de Janeiro),
Ilha do Cardoso and Ilha Comprida (São Paulo), Guarapari (Espírito Santo)
and São José do Norte (Rio Grande do Sul).
Coastal ecosystems are utilized by artisanal fishers. Jangadas, a type of raft, are
used in the northeast, and the fishermen in the south-southeast use small
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boats of about 8 m length, with an inboard motor, many times used in the
trawling of the sete-barbas, a variety of shrimp (xiphopenaeus kroyeri).
Open Ocean, Deep Sea, Upwellings
On the Brazilian coast, areas of upwelling are rare due to the stratification of
the water mass that prevents the surface layers from receiving nutrients from
bottom layers. The main exceptions are areas of upwelling in the Cabo Frio
region (near Rio de Janeiro). These ecosystems are used particularly by the
industrial fleet fishing for tuna and related species.
1.2
DEGRADATION OF THE COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS AND
ITS IMPACT ON ARTISANAL FISHING
While the traditional use of the coastal ecosystems, as in artisanal fishing, has
little effect on the natural resources, the more recent utilization of these
ecosystems has intensified the degradation of these environments considerably,
generally in places where there is urban-industrial activity. The artisanal fishers
use almost all these ecosystems, and their contamination has been of grave
consequence to the productivity of the sector and the quality of life of the
coastal communities.
Along the coast, the most important ecosystem is the Atlantic Forest that, at
the beginning of the Portuguese settlement, covered around 1,000 sq km. In
many parts of the country, this forest reaches the coastline, and, in this sense,
mangroves can be considered part of this large forest. The Mata Atlântica
(Atlantic Forest) has a biological diversity as high as that of the Amazon
Forest, with a large number of endemic species. From the 1960s onwards,
when the urban-industrial development was accelerated, this forest was even
more intensively destroyed, and today only around 5 to 10 per cent of this
large forested biome still exists, mainly along coast of southern Rio de Janeiro,
São Paulo and Paraná States. The Mata Atlântica is also home to different
human cultures, such as Indians and their descendants, the caiçaras and the
jangadeiros (raft fishermen) who have developed a deep knowledge and
traditional management systems of the forest and their adjacent coastal
ecosystems.
During the colonial period, the coastal zones where used as trade centres and
as the gateway to the conquest of the hinterland, where the mineral and
agricultural resources were abundant. Major cities were usually located on the
coastline, thus ensuring communication with the colonial power overseas as
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well as the hinterland. Marine
resources, with the exception
of whales, were also exploited
at the subsistence level. During
that period, boat construction
was one of the few important
industries on shore and was
responsible for intensive
woodcutting
in
some
northeastern provinces.
After Independence, and
particularly during the second
half of the 19th century, most
of the important economic
activities, such as coffee,
rubber
and
sugarcane
plantations, shifted from the
coastal zone to the hinterland.
At the beginning of the 20th
Figure 3: Levels of Degradation of
century, industrialization led to
Estuarine Ecosystems in Brazil
the production of goods for the
internal market to replace imported products. Small industrial plants to process
cotton and food products were concentrated both in the hinterland and on
the coast.
After the 1950s, Brazil pursued an industrial economic model, oriented
towards export. Most of the heavy industries (chemical, petrochemical,
fertilizers) were, and still are, located in estuaries and bays and next to other
fragile coastal ecosystems. Such large industrial centres were located in areas
as in São Luís Island (for alumna processing) in the northern State of Maranhão,
in the coastal lagoons of Maceió, (Alagoas), in Salvador Bay, in the Vitória
Island (for iron export), Rio de Janeiro bay, Santos-Cubatão, in São Paulo, and
in the southern lagoon Dos Patos. Huge harbours for export of mining
production were established in São Luís (Vale do Rio Doce Cia, Maranhão
and Vitória, Espírito Santo). Examples of the large industries settled on the
coast are: chemical industries in Arraial do Cabo (Rio de Janeiro), in Aratu
and Camaçari in Salvador (Bahia); oil and chemical industries in Cubatão
(São Paulo); Dow Chemical, Petrobrás and Petroflex in Rio de Janeiro; Salgema
in Maceió (Alagoas); fertilizers in many cities around the coast; coal mining
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near the coast of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul; iron production in
Cosipa in Cubatão, CST and Cia de Ferro e Aço in Vitória; paper pulp
production, involving large areas of eucalyptus plantations, is important along
the coast of Espírito Santo and southern Bahia (Aracruz Papel e Celulose).
Many alcohol distilleries have been established along the coast, particularly in
the northeast.
As a result, pollution has been heavily concentrated in this zone and coastal
degradation has been extensive (Figure 3).
Increasing urbanization is a crucial process that affects the coastal area, as
five of the nine metropolitan areas in Brazil are located on the coast. In 1990
Rio de Janeiro had a population of 9.6 mn; Recife, 2.5 mn; Salvador, 2.4 mn;
Fortaleza, 2.2 mn. In addition, many capitals of States are also on the coast:
São Luís (population: 655,000), Natal (606,000); Maceió (626,000); Vitória
(523,000); João Pessoa (695,000); Florianópolis (254,000).1
Many of these coastal cities have a high demographic growth, attracting
migrants from the hinterland, and a high percentage of these migrants live in
favelas (slum areas) in Salvador, Fortaleza and Rio de Janeiro.
At the same time, coastal cities are expanding as poor people migrate from
the countryside, where the modernization of Brazilian agriculture has led to
an increasing concentration of productive land in the hands of a few
landowners and groups, both national and multinational. With the expulsion
of small landowners and peasants from the countryside, slum areas have been
established in large coastal cities. Most sewage systems are inadequate, resulting
in increasing pollution of coastal rivers, estuaries, lagoons and bays.
As road transportation has the highest priority in Brazil, many highways
have been built along the coast. One clear example is the BR-101 built in the
1970s, which links many coastal capitals. During the construction process,
many beaches and mangrove areas have been damaged, as has occurred
between Santos and Rio de Janeiro. These coastal roads have also encouraged
the construction of villas by tourists, and causing also the displacement of
many small-scale fishing villages inland and to the mangrove areas, resulting
in the destruction of the Atlantic Forest.
Oil drilling is an important economic activity along the Brazilian coast, and
oil production started in 1973. The main drilling along the coast are Campos
(Rio de Janeiro), Sergipe, Piauí, Rio Grande do Norte, Amazon basin and
Recôncavo Baiano. Over 56 per cent of the oil produced in Brazil comes
from marine basins. There are important harbours where oil is brought ashore,
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the most important of which is situated in São Sebastião, where many accidents
occur regularly. Tourism, fisheries as well as mangroves and other coastal
habitats suffer from frequent oil spills in the area. Coal is also produced in the
coastal area of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. Reefs are also exploited
mainly in the northeastern coast for construction.
The tourism and recreation industry became one of the most important
factors influencing the use of coastal areas and resources. Around 1.6 mn
foreign tourists visit the country, in particular the coastal tourist resorts,
generating an income of US$1.55 bn and around 1.4 mn jobs.
In 1992, EMBRATUR (the Brazilian Agency for Tourism) established the
Plantur (National Plan for Tourism), which created several tourism
development poles in the coastal areas. In 1991, SUDENE (Agency for the
Development of the Northeast) and EMBRATUR created PRODETUR
(Programme for the Development of Tourism) and requested a US$1.6 bn
loan from the InterAmerican Development Bank. This large programme is
directed to the northeastern coast, involving the construction of large hotels,
roads, airports and urban infrastructure, such as water and sewage facilities.
This programme follows the intensive use of the coastline that exists today in
Cancun, Mexico. The ecological and social impacts of this programme have
not yet been properly assessed, and social and environmental groups of the
area are reacting against it, since local communities and the environment will
suffer the most.
Fisheries are also an important source of economic activity along the coastal
and marine environments. In addition to the increasing degradation of inshore
and coastal environments, overfishing undertaken usually by industrial boats
is also occurring, particularly affecting fish species such as shrimps, lobsters,
catfish (piramutaba), and sardines, among others.
Aquaculture is a fast-growing activity along the north and northeastern coast,
affecting several inshore ecosystems such as mangroves, sand barriers and
lagoons. The highest impact comes from shrimp cultivation, which has recently
started in the States of Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Maranhão and
Pernambuco, resulting in massive destruction of mangroves and associated
ecosystems. Large-scale shrimp cultivation is also affecting the livelihoods of
artisanal fishermen as they are loosing their traditional fishing areas.
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2.
FISHERIES IN BRAZIL
2.1
A BRIEF HISTORY
Fishing and mollusc harvesting were important activities for indigenous people
before the arrival of the Portuguese colonizers in the 16th century. In several
areas of the coast there are mounds of oyster shells (sambaquis) showing that
for several centuries, indigenous people fed on molluscs and fish. Jean de
Léry, a French Calvinist who visited Brazil in early 1500 has described fishing
techniques used by coastal Indians such as bone hooks, and small nets made
of fibres found in the forests as well as canoes and jangadas, rafts made of
floating logs. Fishing was also important along the Amazonian rivers, and
Indians used fish as the basic source of protein.
Whaling was the main commercial fishing activity undertaken by the
Portuguese since the beginning of their colonization and for several decades
was a monopoly of the State. Until the end of slavery in 1888, fishing activities
in the northeast were undertaken mainly by African slaves, and fish production
was used to feed labourers in the large farms and towns. Along the coast,
independent producers also used part of their time for fishing and fish-like
mullet was a basis for protein consumption in coastal towns and villages.
The social upper classes however used to import salted cod from Portugal
(Silva, J.G. 1997).
Two types of relations with the sea developed. In the provinces of São Paulo
and Rio de Janeiro, small farmer-fishermen combine fishing with agricultural
activities. In the northeast, coastal communities have developed a long tradition
of coastal fishing, separated from agriculture. One explanation for this
difference, in addition to cultural factors, relies on the fact that the continental
shelf is narrower in the northeast than in the south, and that most of the fish
species live in rocky habitats further from the coast, requiring better
navigational and fishing knowledge on the part of the fishermen. The sandy
coast of that area also inhibited intensive agricultural activities. In this
connection, one could conclude that artisanal fishermen in the northeast have
a strong tradition in dealing with the open sea. Recent studies have analyzed
the question of tradition within the framework of the field of maritime
anthropology. Most of the fishing was done within the system of the petty
mode of production, where part of the fish caught was used for subsistence
and part as commodity.
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Legislation regarding coastal land has contributed to (but also interfered
negatively with) the development of traditional sea tenure. Since the middle
of the last century, a stretch of 33 m of land measured from the 1833 highest
tide belongs to the State (called Terras de Marinha). This area cannot be privately
owned and no permanent construction can be made in that area without State
permission. Small-scale fishermen, although having no legal title, occupy these
areas. In this sense, they have customary rights of occupancy (posse) to live in
those areas, where they build their thatched roof houses. The same right (posse)
is transferred to the nearby coastal waters when they occupy a place in the
estuaries and lagoons to build their fixed traps (cercos).
The State, through the Navy, also tried to control the artisanal fishermen
through forced service. As a result, some fishermen’s rebellions occurred in
1903 in Rio de Janeiro and Ceará. To control these rebellions, the Brazilian
Navy created in 1921 the first fishermen guilds. According to the guild
regulations, all fishermen should be registered in order to get permission to
fish. In practice, each coastal municipality has its own guild that regulates the
lives of the fishermen. According to the new 1988 Constitution, however,
fishermen can organize their own free associations.
Commercial fishing was developed more intensively since the beginning of
the 20th century, particularly in the southern States, where the Portuguese
and Spanish migrants started to use larger boats for sardine fishing, used also
for canning. Industrial fishing was developed more intensively after the 1960s
with the support of a large fisheries development programme undertaken by
SUDEPE. By that time, however, most of the fishing was done by artisanal
fishermen along the coast and rivers.
2.2
FISHERIES PRODUCTION
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has
calculated the sustainable potential for capture as 1.4-1.8 mn tonnes. The
national yield has stabilized at 600-700 tonnes in the decade of the 1990s
(after a rapid growth between 1960 and 1975).
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Table 1: Total Yield of Fish/Year:
Marine Fishing and Freshwater Fishing, 1960-1999
Year
Fresh Per cent Marine Per cent
water
Fishing
Fishing
(tonnes)
(tonnes)
Aquaculture
Total
Brackish
Freshwater
%
%
1960
281.512
1970
526.292
1988
205,175
24.7
624,927
75.3
830,102
1990
219,487
32.0
435,418
68.0
640,295
1992
200,491
29.9
469,842
70.1
670,333
1994
203,589
29.9
479,662
68.4
701,251
1996
210,277
30.33
422,173
60.9
8,490 1.2
52,231
7.5 693,172
1997
178,871
24.4
465,560
63.5
10,180 1.3
77,478
10.5 732,089
1999
185,471
18.5
418,470
56.2
26.513 3.5 114.425
15.3 744.597
Sources: Brazilian Statistical Institute and IBAMA
The total marine fish catches in 1960 was just over 281,000 tonnes and in
1970, during the first years of the government’s fisheries development plan,
there was an increase of 100 per cent, reaching the total catch of 526,292
tonnes.
In the last decade, total catches averaged 700,000 tonnes, of which 450,000
tonnes were of marine catches. There was also an increase in aquaculture, in
particular freshwater fish cultivation, especially in the rural areas in the south
and southeast (Table 1).
According to Dias Neto (1999), the situation of fishing of the major marine
species in the 1990s, undertaken particularly by industrial fishing, is as follows:
Sardine (Sardinella brasiliensis) is, historically, the main fish resource as far as
total yield is concerned and is harvested along the southeastern coast. The
production system is based on family business and large companies, and fishing
is undertaken with the use of the encircling net. The fish stock has decreased
dramatically in the 1990s, probably due to overfishing and climatic change.
Several canning industries closed down as a result of this situation. Sardine
fishing has shown some recovery by the end of the 1990s, but the resource
situation is still considered to be critical. Most of the production is targeted at
the internal market and is consumed by low-income people. There are several
regulatory measures such as minimum size of capture, suspension of fishing
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during the reproductive phase of fish, and prohibition of the entry of new
sardine fishing boats.
Lobster (Panulirus argus and P.laevicauda) is an important export-oriented species
harvested in the northeast by artisanal fishermen and fishing firms using traps
and nets. The yield has been decreasing in the last years, and minimum size of
capture is used as a regulatory measure.
Catfish (piramutaba, Brachyplatistoma vaillalnti) is a valuable species harvested
in the Amazon by artisanal and industrial fishermen, using trawling and
longlines. The main problem is overfishing, and trawling is prohibited in certain
areas. Today the harvest is directed at the domestic market.
Pink shrimp (camarão rosa, Penaeus brasiliensis and P. paulensis) is harvested in
the southeastern region, from Rio de Janeiro to Rio Grande do Sul, and targeted
at both the foreign and domestic markets. The fishing is done mainly by
industrial boats, although this shrimp species is also caught by artisanal
fishermen. The situation of the stock is considered to be critical due to
overfishing. The main regulatory measures are minimum size and closed
seasons.
Sete barbas shrimp (Xiphopenaeus kroyeri) is also harvested in the southeastern
region. Artisanal fishermen harvest this species using small trawlers.
Production is targeted at the domestic market, and the resource is highly
exploited. Regulatory measures are controls on the size of the net and the
number of boats.
Demersal fishes like Micropogonia furnieri, Macrodom ancylodon and Cynoscion
estriatus, corbin or weak fish) are harvested in the southeastern region and
production is entirely directed to the domestic market. These species are caught
by artisanal fishermen as well as by industrial fishermen. There has been a
certain decrease of the stock due mainly to overfishing by the industrial fleet.
Tuna (Katuwonus pelamis, Thunus obesus, T. alalunga, T albacares, Xiphias gladius,
Coryphaeuna hippurus, Scomberomus cavalla and S. brasiliensis) are harvested in
the open sea and in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Tuna fishing is done
exclusively by the industrial fleet and is directed at the export market. There
is still some potential for catch increases.
It is important to note that IBAMA exercises a certain control on the species
harvested by the industrial fishing firms, but there is little information on the
situation of the resources captured exclusively by artisanal fishermen, mainly
in estuaries, lagoons, beaches and rivers.
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Overexploitation is a result of the growing demand for species such as shrimp
and lobsters, acquired by the intermediaries beyond the quantities permitted
by the law. To our understanding, it seems that overfishing, encouraged by the
opportunistic middlemen, is not solely responsible for the lowering of the
productivity; there are also other factors such as urban-industrial pollution
and environmental degradation that are equally important causes.
In principle, the possibility of the expansion of the fishing of certain demersal
and pelagic species exists (like weak fish, corbines, tuna and lane snapper),
but there are signs of overfishing, mainly in the most important fish resources
such as sardines, shrimp, lobsters and catfish.
Besides the capturing of fish, there is also great potential, not yet exploited,
in mariculture, above all of mussels, oysters and prawn. The molluscs (crabs,
large oysters and mussels) are extracted artisanally in all the regions in the
country, when fish capturing is small, and the collection of mussels and shellfish
is done by women and children, supplying the poorest with their daily nutrition.
There is also a tradition of extensive cultivation of fishes and crustaceans in
the brush parks, ponds and tanks constructed by small fishers. The extensive
cultivation in ponds in the northeast represents an important part of the diet
of the rural population.
Intensive aquaculture, nevertheless, is carried out by companies and is in a
state of heavy expansion in Brazil, especially in the northeast, where there is
a great threat to the mangroves, a legally protected ecosystem, and to the way
of life of the artisanal fishers.
The freshwater prawn (M. rosenbergii) was introduced in the 1970s and is the
most important species in commercial cultivation in the Brazilian coast. This
activity is in its infancy but is growing rapidly. There are also plans to expand
culturing of marine prawn (Penaeus schmitii, P. paulensis and P. japonicus). This
could pose a grave threat to the mangroves, which are ecosystems totally
protected by the law, and to the artisanal fishers who work in these ecosystems.
The production of shrimps in ponds grew from 2,385 tonnes in 1994 to 15,000
tonnes in 1999, utilizing an area of 5,000 ha. In 2000, the total shrimp culture
reached 25,000 tonnes, mainly for export, occupying around 7.000 ha.
Aquaculture has increased its proportion of funding, from US$120,000 in
1990 to US$13,028 in 1996, as loans taken from BNDES, the National Bank
for Social and Economic Development (Martins, 2002).
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3. FISH MARKETING AND PROCESSING
Most of the frozen fish traded in large city supermarkets come from industrial
fishing industries and imports. Artisanal production is generally traded in
coastal towns and regional centres. Most of the crabs, mussels, oysters and
other shells are produced by artisanal fishermen, and the commercialization
is done, sometimes, through co-operatives. In Santa Catarina, many smallscale fishermen are becoming oyster cultivators, partly due to the decrease in
fish stocks. Mussels are also being cultivated by small-scale fishermen in the
northern coast of São Paulo. Fish from rivers and lakes as well as from sport
fishing is increasingly important as a source of protein in urban centres.
3.1
THE MARKET
Brazil has a population of around 170 mn people who consume around 6.4 kg
of fish per person per year, lower than the international average, which, in
1990, was around 13.5 kg/person/year. A large part of the catch (70 per
cent) is for consumption, and 30 per cent for the production of fish oils and
fishmeal.
Until 1998, the country used to export more fish than it imported, but this
trend was reversed and today imports are rising considerably. The main products
exported are shrimp, lobster, lane snapper and catfish to the US, the European
Union and the countries in Mercosul. Paraíba State is becoming an important
harbour for tuna export, having exported 10,000 tonnes to US and Europe in
2000.
The imports come mainly from Argentina (hake), Chile (salmon) and Norway,
Portugal and Canada (cod). In 1995 Brazil imported 206,362 tonnes of fish
and in 1997, 190,105 tonnes, the equivalent of one-third of the total national
capture (BNDES,1996).
Most of the fish export is done by fishing industries located in the Santa
Catarina, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Ceará and Pará States. However, part of
the lobster and shrimp exported is caught by artisanal fishermen and sold to
local industries for export.
The network of fish trade in artisanal fishing villages is complex, often involving
middlemen at several levels, from the beach to the neighbouring cities and
central markets in State capitals. In the Amazonian region, for instance, artisanal
fishworkers, especially those who live far from the cities, are totally dependent
on the middlemen who enjoy a monopoly. In Pará the fish bought by the geleiro
is resold to the ‘weigher’ who, in turn, sells it to the ‘retailer’ and to the ‘retail
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market’. In the 1970s, due to the widening of the roadways network, the
traders in the cities as well as the fishing companies used to send their trucks
to the beaches to purchase fish from artisanal fishermen. The fishing companies
pay for the fuel of the motorized artisanal boats in exchange for the monopoly
given to them in the purchase of the catch.
3.2
THE PROCESSING INDUSTRY
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, in 1995 there were around 277 fish
storage and processing units in the country, as compared to the 338 that existed
ten years ago. This meant a decrease by 18 per cent of industrial units, between
1985 and 1986. The sardine sector suffered a significant loss in that decade,
caused by the drastic reduction in the catches of sardine (Table2).
At present (1995) these units are distributed State-wise as follows:
Table 2: Industrial Units in the Major States
State
Santa Catarina
São Paulo
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio de Janeiro
Pará
Ceará
Others
Number
55
49
27
26
24
19
77
Per cent
19.9
17.7
9.7
9.4
8.7
6.9
27.7
Source: BNDES, 1996
The centres that are historically important for the fish-processing industry are
Rio de Janeiro and the southern region of the country, mainly Santa Catarina
and Rio Grande do Sul. The industry in Rio Grande is mainly constituted by
plants established since the beginning of the 20th century, when industrial
fish harvesting was introduced by Portuguese fishermen. When many of
the subsidized firms went bankrupt in the 1980s and 1990s, due to overfishing
and poor administration, and when the subsidies were subsequently
cut, multinational firms such as Quaker and Unilever bought up Brazilian
firms.
Funding for industrial fisheries development ceased when SUDEPE was
extinguished in 1988 and was resumed on a smaller scale by BNDES, the
National Bank for Social and Economic Development that, in 1996 released
US$3,106,000 for fish-processing industries and less than US$100,000 for
fishing firms.
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The plants in the north of the country, particularly in Pará, are more recent
and have resulted, partly, from the relocation of the plants in the southern
States of the country, whose fishing companies overexploited the main species
of fish and shrimps in the southeastern region in the 1970s and 1980s and
subsequently relocated to the Amazonian region where the reserves were
relatively unexploited. The plants in Ceará process lobster for exports and
buy an important part of the artisanal production.
In fish-processing plants, according to Barbosa, Lima and Maneschy (2000),
the division of labour by sex follows a pattern. Men undertake pre-processing
tasks — unloading at the port, transporting to the plant unit, and weighing.
Both men and women contribute to the initial stages of processing: breaking
fish stings and placing the fish on conveyor belts. The work that follows takes
place in an air-conditioned hall, where sanitation measures are strictly enforced.
Most tasks here are performed by women—de-heading the fish, passing them
through the rotatory saw (according to the species and market demand, it
might be necessary to take off the skin), slicing the fish with a horizontal
blade, de-boning, filleting, washing, packing, weighing and arranging the fish
in trays. These trays are then transported to the freezer chambers where men
take over.
Recently, D. Silva (1999) has compiled data on 26 women workers of Belém,
16 of whom happened to be working without registration cards, indicating
temporary and unstable employment conditions. Subcontracting by companies
was a common feature, going by the experience of those interviewed. There
is a high turnover of women workers in processing plants–a common feature
in this line of work.
Small-scale fish processing is also done at the coastal village level. Traditionally,
fish such as mullet and shrimp are salted, dried or smoked for home
consumption or for trade in nearby coastal towns. Women’s labour is essential
in this small-scale processing. In some villages, where electricity is installed,
some fishermen are able to buy small freezers in which part of the catch is
kept frozen and sold to tourists and restaurants.
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4. FISH PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
There are two systems of fish production in Brazil, which are now
interdependent: industrial and artisanal. Industrial fishing is defined as fish
harvesting undertaken by large boats that belong to a fish company. The social
and technical division of labour is marked, and production is sold to processing
companies in large markets (wholesale export centres) where industrial fisheries
concentrate to market high-value species such as lobster, shrimp and tuna.
Industrial fishing experienced fast growth after 1967, with the fiscal incentive
policies introduced by the then recently created SUDEPE. After 1967, various
fishing companies were set up, with the main objective of exporting shrimps
and lobsters. Many of them did not have any experience in the sector and
basically profited from the fiscal incentives. In 1974, 117 industrial units
received fiscal incentives, many of them (77 per cent of the total) located in
the south-southeastern regions, and responsible for the major part of fish
production in Brazil. With the cessation of incentives, many of them
disappeared. Others, after having excessively overexploited the southsoutheastern regions, moved on to destroy the fish reserves in the rich northern
region. Very frequently, industrial fishing boats invade areas that are legally
reserved for artisanal fishing.
In the 1970s, there were 204 boats operating, with a total of over 90 tonnes,
concentrated mainly in Santa Catarina (45), São Paulo (54) and Pará (34) and
mostly belonging to companies that disappeared with the termination of fiscal
incentives towards the end of the 1980s. At the beginning of the 1970s, there
were around 7,000 fishworkers employed by industrial fisheries and firms,
concentrated mainly in the south-southeastern region. As no statistical census
has been taken since the disappearance of SUDEPE in 1989, it is very difficult
to ascertain how many fishworkers are currently employed by the fishing
industries in Brazil. Nevertheless, it would appear to be a much smaller number
than in the 1970s.
Today many fish companies in north and northeastern Brazil are located in
Belém, Pará, and there are others in Fortaleza (Ceará) and Recife (Pernambuco),
and in the State of Amapá. IBAMA, the Brazilian environmental body that
controls and regulates fishing activities, has issued prawn fishing licences for
250 vessels and piramutaba licences for 48 vessels in the northern coast of
Brazil (Maneschy, 2000).
In 1999 around 43 fishing companies of the region were associated with
SINPESCA, the union of fishing industries, 40 in Pará and three in Amapá.
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Most of the companies are located in Belém (35), employing an average of
4,000 people. Of late, though, this number has reduced considerably. In 1999,
hardly 2,800 people were employed in this sector, around 1,500 in fishing and
1,300 in post-harvesting activities, including women who worked in processing.
According to Maneschy (2000), the prawn season in the northern region is
from February to November. Steel vessels, each 22-m long with a 375-hp
engine, a gross weight of 100 tonnes and a refrigeration system on board, are
employed. The crew comprises five men, and the journey lasts 45 days. Each
ship has two trawl nets (double rigs). The prawns are shelled on board, washed,
brined and stored in the refrigerated chambers. On land, they are washed
again, classified according to size and packed for refreezing until the time for
export. According to SINPESCA, the catch, which in 1998 was over 2000
tonnes, is primarily exported to Japan (50 per cent) and the US (30 per cent),
while 20 per cent is sold to the domestic market.
The same types of boats are employed for catching fish, though they lack
refrigeration facilities on board. The trips last 15 days. Some 48 boats hold
licences to operate along the northern coasts, though SINPESCA admits that
some boats operate illegaly. At present, 60 per cent of the fish production is
sold in the internal market, and 40 per cent is exported to the US, mainly of
catfish (piramutaba and dourada). Around 600 tonnes of fish were exported in
1998–a drastic fall from 1993, when more than 2,000 tonnes were exported
(Maneschy, 2000).
The artisanal fisheries sector has a long-standing tradition in Brazil and, at the
time of the establishment of fiscal incentives, represented more than 80 per
cent of the fish production of the country. Artisanal fishing is practised in the
coastal ecosystems (lagoons, estuaries and the continental platform) by a
number of fishworker communities settled along the coast and in small coastal
towns.
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Table 3: Lists the Main Species Captured by Means of Artisanal and
Industrial Fishing in the Four Coastal Regions of Brazil
Region
North
Northeast
South/
Southeast
Artisanal
dorada, corbina, gurijuba,
crab, piramutaba catfish
mackerel, sierra, lane
snapper, dogfish,
lobster, shellfish, crab
dogfish, corbine, weak
fish, plain fish, shrimp,
shellfish
Coastal Industrial
shrimp, piramutaba
catfishlane snapper
lane snapper, lobster
Oceanic Industrial
lane snapper
albacore, bonito
sardines, corbine,
weak fish, shrimp
albacore, bonito,
dogfish
For the purpose of this article, the following classification of regions has been used:
North: The States of Pará and Amapá
Northeast: Maranhão, Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe, Bahia
Southeast: Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo
South: Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul
There is a continuing debate on the definition of the term ‘artisanal fishing’.
The criteria adopted by SUDEPE to classify the sector is to consider boats
with less than 20 tonne capacity, which is clearly unsatisfactory, as some
industrial fishing boats also fall into this category. As a result, statistics on the
production in the sector are not accurate.
In this study, a marine artisanal fisherman is defined as an independent fish
harvester whose livelihood is based on fishing, on a part- or full-time basis,
using labour and knowledge-intensive fishing techniques, employing family
community labour on a share basis for harvesting in coastal habitats. The fish
catch is usually sold in the market, usually through middlemen, although part
of the production is directed for household consumption.
Although the issue of traditional knowledge and management will be discussed
later, it is important to emphasize that tradition, knowledge and profession
are at the core of the definition of an artisanal fisherman. A profession is
understood as a possession of knowledge or a set of skills, practices and
techniques responsible for the perpetuation of fishing as a livelihood. In this
sense, making a livelihood from the sea, rather from the land, is a basic feature
of the communities of maritime artisanal fishermen. The unique character of
maritime communities is linked to the physical environment, which suffers
marked seasonal changes and is affected by atmospheric conditions, leading
to rapid transformations in the marine conditions (thunderstorms, hurricanes,
seaquakes), which, in turn, pose constant danger to those working there.
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Renewable natural resources in the open sea, especially the several species of
fish, are mobile and often not visible, migrating from one environment to
another and reproducing themselves according to complex patterns.
Artisanal fishermen, in the process of symbolically representing the sea and
its living resources, developed different kinds of social, economic and cultural
practices for using and coexisting with their maritime environment. These
social and cultural practices give a cultural dimension to the maritime
environment.
The control over the art of fishing is learned both with the elders and through
experience. With the elders, a fisher also learns the symbolic representation
of the natural world expressed as the ‘respect’ for the laws that govern the
sea, its resources and the whole community life. This knowledge is located in
the figure of the boat captain who holds the secrets of the sea and the
traditional techniques for locating schools of fish.
Traditional artisanal fishing communities, however, should not be considered
as being unchanging or having no history. Several authors in Brazil (Forman,
1970; Mourão, 1971; Diegues, l983; Cordell, 2000) have already shown that
various technological changes (nylon nets, engines, etc.) were adopted by
artisanal fishermen’s communities without inducing radical transformation in
the relations of productions. In some cases, however, there has been a
transformation (partial or complete) of fishermen-peasants into full-time
maritime fishermen, who are still integrated into the petty mode of production.
In the fishing of sardines, for example, where large seine-boats and nets belong
to the fishing industry, some artisanal fishermen were incorporated into the
crews of capitalist fishing boats within a new form of production (Duarte,
1973). The transformation of independent artisanal fishermen in crew members
of a large industrial boat, however, is conflictive and, in most cases, transient,
as artisanal fishermen frequently return to their autonomous familiar way of
fishing.
Although artisanal fishermen’s communities share social characteristics along
the Brazilian coast, the definition of artisanal fishermen should take into
consideration specific regional cultural and ecological features.
The importance of artisanal fishing in Brazil is due to (a) the volume and
value of the catches; (b) the number of persons employed in the capture,
processing and marketing of the product; and (c) the economic, social and
cultural functioning of the fishworker communities spread out in the coastal
areas.
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Table 4: Maritime Industrial and Artisanal Fish Production
Year
Total Production Industrial Fishing Per cent Artisanal Fishing
(tonnes)
(tonnes)
(tonnes)
1960
276,000
36,000
16.4
240,000
Per cent
83.6
1970
478,000
198,000
46.4
280,000
53.4
1980
635,968
392,325
61.6
243,643
38.4
2002
535.403
149.603
47.5
281.329
52.5
Source: IBGE and IBAMA
Past statistics show that artisanal fishing was predominant in the 1960s, before
the introduction of the government’s policy of support to industrial fishing.
The proportion of artisanal fishing in relation to industrial fishing decreased
towards the end of the 1970s and the 1980s. In 2002 it once again exceeded
industrial fishing. To what do we owe the increase in artisanal fishing in the
past years? Without doubt, to the fact that the fishing firms, after exploiting
areas traditionally used by artisanal fishworkers, withdrew from them, as they
ceased to be profitable, and abandoned them to artisanal fishing. On the other
hand, artisanal fishing has increased in rivers and dams.
It is necessary to clarify that, in regard to maritime fishing, an important part
of the production attributed to industrial fishing companies is, in fact, artisanal,
as the product from artisanal fishing is sold to industries and industrial fleets.
On an average, artisanal fishing is responsible for more than 50 per cent of
the total value of the capture, exceeding industrial fish production in some
regions (north and northeast). This indicates that artisanal fishing concentrates
mainly on the exploitation of species of higher market value.
Table 5: Contribution of Artisanal and Industrial
Catches Regionwise (1980-1995)
Regions
Years
North
1980
2002
1980
2002
1980
2000
1980
2002
Northeast
Southeast
South
Industrial
Production
(tonnes)
4,332
27,315
21,837
13,269
202,237
63,887
163,929
149,603
Per cent
11.5
16.7
18.0
12.0
79.3
65.7
74.1
91.4
Artisanal
Production
(tonnes)
34,578
136,588
99,027
97,240
52,707
33,401
57,331
14,101
Per cent
Total
(tonnes)
88.0
83.3
82.0
88.0
20.7
34.3
25.9
8.6
38,910
63,903
120,864
110,509
254,944
97,288
221,260
163,704
Source: IBGE/IBAMA
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Firstly, a significant decrease (around 50 per cent) in the total catch is to be
noted between 1980 and 2002, in the south and southeastern regions,
traditionally the most important fishing areas in the country. This reduction is
explained, to a large extent, by the decrease in sardine fishing. At the same
time, there is a minor increase in the total capture in the northern and
northeastern regions. In these regions there is an increase in artisanal fishing,
compared to industrial fishing. In the case of the northern region, it must be
emphasized that the data refers to coastal fishing and does not include river
and lake fishing, which enjoy great regional importance (Table 5).
In summary, artisanal fisheries is more important than industrial fishing in the
north and northeastern regions and less important than industrial fishing in
the south/southeastern regions.
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5. LABOUR FORCE AND TECHNOLOGY
It is extremely difficult to estimate the number of artisanal fishworkers because,
as we have seen, it depends on the criteria adopted to define them. The number
of marine artisanal fishermen increased from 112,318 in 1967 to 248,370 in
2000, due not only because of natural population increase but also because
of migration from the countryside.
In 2000, it was estimated that there were about 248,370 fishworkers on the
Brazilian coast, organized into guilds (colonias), with the northeast having more
or less 61 per cent of these, followed by the north, with 29 per cent. The
south has 9.5 per cent, while the southeast has 12 per cent of the total number
of guilds (Confederação de Pescadores, 1986, Table 6). It is estimated that
the number of marine artisanal fishermen is much higher when fishermen not
associated with guilds are taken into consideration (only along the coast,
without taking into consideration the inland waters).
Table 6: Number of Fishworkers Associated with the
Guilds Regionwise (1967-2000)
Years
Percentage
of Total
1986
Percentage
of Total
2000
8,362
7.4
49,393
19.0
72,164
29.0
Northeast
39.732
35.3
104,759
40.4
152,548
61.4
Southeast
9,703
8.6
47,522
18.3
29,931
12.0
South
19,723
17.5
57,506
22.2
23,658
9.5
Total
112,318
100
259,212
100
248,370
100
North
1967
Percentage
of Total
Source: SUDEPE, 1967; Confederação Nacional dos Pescadores, 1986 and IBGE, 2000
Another important factor is the place of residence; around 51 per cent of
artisanal fishermen live in rural areas, against 49 per cent in urban areas. In
the north and the northeast, artisanal fishworkers live mainly in rural
communities, while in the southeastern region, they are mainly urban dwellers.
Given that these data of the IBGE refer to the 1970s and keeping in mind
that rural-urban emigration was high in that period, it can be presumed that
the degree of urbanization of the artisanal fishworkers is much higher now
(Table 6). The artisanal fleet comprises 49,105 boats, of which 42,850 are
non-motorized, and 6,335 are motorized. The northeast has the largest number
of motor boats (around 35 per cent), followed by the south (Rio Grande do
Sul and Santa Catarina) with around 30 per cent, according to SUDEPE.
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6. ORGANIZATION OF ARTISANAL FISHING AT
THE REGIONAL LEVEL
The vast expanse of the national territory, and the diversity of the aquatic
ecosystems and fishing methods, call for a regionwise analysis. The Brazilian
coast is divided into four major coastal regions: the northern region, the
northeast, the southeast and the south (Figure 4).
Figure 4: Relationship Between Marine Artisanal/
Industrial Production by Region
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6.1
NORTHERN REGION (FROM AMAPÁ TO PIAUI STATE
BORDERS)
Geographical Characteristics
The northern region is a vast continental platform formed by sedimentary
deposits brought by the River Amazon. These waters are highly productive
and this is one of the areas with maximum fishing potential in Brazil. It is an
area with extended mangroves and very productive inlets, where an important
number of artisanal fishermen live.
Production and Technology
A large proportion of boats are non-motorized, in particular in the communities
of artisanal fishworkers, and motorboats are used in urban centres and ports,
such as Manaus and Belém.
According to Maneschy (2000), the State of Pará has both industrial as well
as artisanal fisheries. For the first sector, the main focus is the external market
(domestic and international). Artisanal fisheries supply the local, regional and
national markets. The traditional sector comprises a heterogeneous mix of
people and social conditions. The industrial fleet comprises a little over five
per cent of the total fleet, and is greatly outnumbered by the artisanal fleet.
According to IBAMA figures, in 1998 there were 3,966 boats in the 15 coastal
municipalities of Pará. Of these, only 204 belonged to the industrial sector.
A large number of small boats are non-motorized. Wooden boats, up to 12 m
long, predominate. While the industrial fleet operates motorized trawling, both
for fish (the ariidae, catfish, being the main catch) and for prawns, the traditional
fleet employs mobile gear, using nets and espinhéis, which are longlines with
hundreds of hooks.
The types of boats used for small-scale fishing are of indigenous and Portuguese
origin. While these are fishing boats, the geleiras are boats used for the
transportation of foodstuffs and ice, and, in general, belong to traders who
buy fish from the small fishers. The most important species captured by the
artisanal method are shrimp, gurijuba, piramutaba catfish, corvine, dourado and
crab.
Until 1970, almost all the fishing in the region was artisanal. This was the
period in which pioneer fishing firms began to be established, dealing in the
capture of piramutaba catfish and shrimp for exports.
The total potential for sustained capture is between 390,000 and
480,000 tonnes. In 1997, the total production was 139,645 tonnes or almost
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20 per cent of the total national catches. Out of this, around 70 per cent is a
product of freshwater fishing, as the northern region is the only one in which
the yield from rivers and lakes is higher than the marine yield. Artisanal fishing
is important in this region, accounting for 83 per cent of marine production,
and the percentage gets higher for river and dam fishing.
According to Barebosa, Lima and Maneschy (2000), aquaculture is relatively
new in this region. The government is making efforts (through the State
Agriculture Ministry, for example) to develop the potential in the region, which,
according to experts, is high, given the hydrological conditions (MoraesRiodades, personal communication). According to Val et al (Moraes-Riodades,
unpublished), there are around 450 aquaculture farms in the Pará State, in
which 16 municipalities cultivate fish and shrimp species. The main native
species are cultivated mainly by medium and small producers. Some
fishworkers’ colônias (recognized organizations that represent fishermen at the
municipal level), like Araní, Cametá and Abaetuba support the practice of
aquaculture by fishworker families, as it provides additional income for poor
people.
Organization of Fishworkers
As mentioned earlier, the northern region houses nearly 20 per cent of the
total fishworkers in Brazil, a majority of them being artisanal fishworkers.
The fishworkers are organized into colonias, whose membership is obligatory.
There are four colonias in Amapá and 44 in Pará. A considerable number of
the presidents of these colonias are not members of the fishing profession, the
same being the case with town councillors and fish traders. They, however,
exercise great influence on the fishworkers, which is a limiting factor in finding
solutions to the problems that besiege the sector in the region. Of late, as a
result of the activities of NGOs like the Church and MONAPE, there has
been a move to change the orientation of some colonias in the area (Santarém,
in Pará) with the introduction of elections for the post of president.
The social relations among artisanal fishermen are based on the sharing system.
Through this system, the owner of boat/gear receives 50 per cent of the
shares, while the remaining catch is divided among the fishermen.
The funding of the fishing operation is done through moneylending, locally
called ‘avio’, by which the fish trader takes care of the fishing expenses, and
the costs are deducted from the total value of the catch. The boatowner, in
general a broker, gives the fisherman an advance to cover the susbistence
needs of the family he leaves behind. The fishers, on their part, agree to sell
the entire produce at a stipulated price, which is much lower than the market
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value. In this system, the fishers are totally dependent on the broker financing
them.
Some government programmes were established in the region to overcome
the problems of traditional funding for fishing operations. Fishworkers have
co-ordinated with farmers, workers involved in extracting industries, and other
segments of producers from Gritos da Terra to obtain subsidized credit for
fisheries. The result of these negotiations has been the creation of lines of
financing for social development, like Crédito Produtivo, the special State
government finance programme that offers credit to finance purchase of
production equipment such as boats, nets and motors.
The Professional Education Programme (PEP) has been introduced by the
Labour Ministry for training fishing communities in methods of fish capture,
processing and handling. In spite of the lack of opportunities for the practical
application of what was learned, and the lack of continuity in the programme,
this was perhaps the first effort on the part of the government to educate
fishworkers on the finer aspects of their jobs (Barbosa, Lima and Maneschy,
2000).
Marketing
The weakness of the onboard storage, transportation and marketing systems
is the cause of the very high levels of loss or damage to the products of the
fishermen. To improve the marketing system, the federal government planned
a programme for the construction of fishing ports in Belém and San Luis,
financed by the InterAmerican Development Bank. The programme also
included the construction of intermediary ports along the coast, as well as
the acquisition of boats and fishing gear. However, many of these facilities,
such as ice factories and cold storage rooms, instead of benefiting small-scale
fishermen, as planned, fell under the control of private firms and fish traders.
6.2
NORTHEASTERN REGION
Geographical Characteristics
The northeastern region begins in Foz do Parnaíba (Piauí) and ends in Cabo
Frio, in the state of Rio de Janeiro. This region is a narrow continental platform
with large areas of reefs containing corals and calcareous algae. Owing to the
type of seabed, the trawling techniques are limited. The northeast is a region
with many large sandy beaches covered by palm trees, with a semi-arid climate
and quite regular wind conditions. The coast is not very jagged and rarely
offers safe harbours for the boats. From Cabo Calcanhar onwards, reefs appear
running parallel to the coast until near Recôncavo Baiano.
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Production, Technology and Marketing
A raft specifically adapted to the geographical conditions of the area was
developed by the locals. Known as the ‘jangada’, it is a simple construction of
wood and sails, and is highly stable, with the ability to berth on any type of
beach and to sail above the reef barriers. Of late, the difficulty in finding the
right type of wood for their construction has restricted the replacement of
these rafts. Besides these, there are a large variety of boats used in this region,
such as the canoes used in lagoons and inlets, sailboats, motorboats, etc.
The species of maximum importance in artisanal fishing are lobster, mackerel,
sawfish and dogfish. In 1997, the regional yield was 188,023 tonnes, that is
20 per cent of the total produce in Brazil. Around 70 per cent of the production
is from marine fishing.
Artisanal fishing is of great importance in this region. In 1995, it accounted
for 84 per cent of the total production. Industrial fishing concentrates on
lobster and the lane snapper.
The estuarine production is drawn from the inlets, bays and lagoons, with the
help of gear such as encircling nets, beach-seines, and longlines. The most
harvested species are the catfish and crab. In some States, there is a special
type of fishing in ‘ponds’, an incipient cultivation technique in which the
young hakes are trapped in the estuaries where they grow. The ponds manifest
high productivity (around 1 tonne per hectare) and need small investments.
These, however, are threatened by environmental degradation.
Another technique used is the caiçara (brush park made of branches put into
water to attract fish), in the lagoons of Mandaú and Manguaba, in Algoas,
where the branches are deposited into the bottom to attract hakes that are
bred there. Among the estuarine species worth mentioning are the caranguejouçá (Ucides cordatus) a variety of crab, captured mainly in Sergipe, Pernambuco
and Bahia; the fishery is an alternate source of income for a large number of
poor fishers and their families.
Coastal fishing exploits the highly fertile and less productive ecosystems of
the continental platform. Rafts and sailboats are used to exploit these isolated
regions in the coast. The major species captured are mackerel, sawfish, flying
fish and swordfish (pelagic). Among others are the lane snapper, grouper and
giant croakers, besides the lobster.
Organization of Fishworkers
In the northeast, there are 273,315 fishworkers, more than the total number
of artisanal fishworkers in Brazil. Of these, 104,759 are organized into 157
FISHERIES IN BRAZIL
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colonias. Maranhão (30,476) and Bahia (24,174) are the States that have a
high number of artisanal fishworkers (Table 6).
The following are some of the main obstacles in the development of fishing:
1) Limitations on the expansion of fish yield. Unlike the northern region,
the northeast has already achieved the maximum sustainable yield,
with little possibility of an increase in the physical volume of fish production.
In this sense, the regulation to reduce fishing activity takes on a special
dimension. The regulatory measures, in general, affect the artisanal
fishworkers more, as they have very meagre incomes. Any step that implies a
further reduction in their income, is, in general, favourable to industrial
fishing, and is not accepted voluntarily. In many cases, the necessity arises to
create employment outside the fishing sector, in integrated rural development
projects.
2) Tight control of the marketing structure by middlemen. The existing system
allows the profit of the intermediaries to be excessively high, while the incomes
of the fishers remain very low.
3) Administration of the colonias by non-fishers. The patronage system, through
which small-scale fishermen are dependent on middlemen, hinders a
democratic representation of fishermen in the guilds or colonias.
4) Degradation of the coastal environment. Rapid urbanization, uncontrolled
development of tourism and the location of industrial belts in estuaries
and other rich ecosystems have led to a decrease in the natural productivity
of the ecosystems and of fishing itself. Alternatives such as coastal
aquaculture are threatened by the contamination of the waters. A very serious
source of pollution of these ecosystems is alcohol production, in which
alcohol manufacturers directly dispose off their toxic wastes (vinhoto)
into the estuaries. This phenomenon is very serious in States such as
Pernambuco and Alagoas. Offshore petroleum drilling also poses a
high risk to the coastal environment, from Sergipe to Bahia. On the other
hand, highly productive lagoons such as the lagoons in Mundau and
Munguaba (Alagoas) as well as important bays, for example the Salvador Bay,
are being threatened by the dumping of toxic wastes into the waters
(Figure 3).
5) Lack of capital. Although the region has benefited from credit financing
programmes, the lack of working capital and capital for replacement of gear
is a serious constraint for small-scale fisheries development.
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6.3 SOUTHEASTERN/SOUTHERN REGION
Geographical Characteristics
There are two regions: the southeastern, from Cabo Frio to the Cabo Santa
Marta in Santa Catarina, and the southern region, from Cabo Santa Marta to
the southern border of Brazil (the Chuí river). The two regions are similar
from the oceanographic point of view. The continental platform has a muddy
bed, allowing for trawling in a large part of its area. In the south of Brazil
appears the Malvina Current, creating a tropical convergence responsible for
a considerable increase in the natural productivity.
Production and Technology
The southeastern region (the State of Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo and São
Paulo) has, according to FAO, a maximum sustainable yield of 275,000 to
300,000 tonnes/year. In 1997 catches reached 162,885 or 22 per cent of the
national harvest. On the other hand, from Rio de Janeiro towards the south,
artisanal fishing loses its importance in relation to industrial/firm-based fishing,
which is responsible for around 77.5 per cent of the capture (in 1995). This is
due not only to oceanographic and biological factors (trawling facilities, large
biomasses of pelagic fish) but also to the incentives given to fishing industries
by SUDEPE after 1967. The southeastern/southern region absorbed more
than 90 per cent of the total of fiscal incentives.
The southern region shows the highest fish yield in the country, with 30 per
cent of the total yield in 1997. Artisanal fishing contributes only 18 per cent
to the total marine catches.
The main fish resources exploited are the shrimp reserves (white shrimp and
camarão sete-barbas, plain fish, weak fish, catfish and small anchovies. Apart
from the camarão sete-barbas, many other species are harvested in bays and
estuaries by artisanal fishers. Out of the resources exploited by artisanal fishing,
only the camarão sete-barbas has achieved the estimated maximum sustainable
yield.
Two of the largest estuarine complexes in the country are located in the southern
and southeastern regions: the Iguape-Cananéia in São Paulo, and the dos Patos
lagoon Rio Grande do Sul. Besides these, there are smaller estuaries spread
out in the region.
In spite of the potential that small-scale fishing has, fishers complain of the
continually depleting stocks. Some studies, though, point to the possible misuse
of the coastal resources and to the effects of sea pollution as far more damaging
than an increase in fishing activity per se.
In fact, a large number of the estuaries face serious problems of environmental
degradation, as for example, the Dos Patos lagoon, an important fish nursery
FISHERIES IN BRAZIL
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near which the southern petrochemical belt is located with numerous chemical
industries, cellulose paper factories, tanneries, etc. (Figure 3).
Organization of Production and Technology
The southeastern region has fewer registered artisanal boats (2,855), around
6 per cent of the total number in the country, 30 per cent of them being
motorized (the largest percentage of the country). The southern region has
16,744 boats, of which only 3.5 per cent are motorboats. The non-motorized
boats operate mainly in the estuarine regions.
The Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul region has a better organizational
structure due to the presence of experienced Portuguese and Azorian fishers,
who migrated to Brazil. The region also has a dynamic artisanal sector
comprising fishers who utilize boats of Portuguese origin called baleiras and
are mainly involved in shrimp fishing.
While the motorboats in the coastal zone use small shrimp trawls and set nets
for fish, in the coastal estuarine areas a large variety of gear such as encircling
nets, trammel nets and beach-seines are used.
Organization of Fishing
Several sharing systems exist between members who participate in the fishing
activity. In motorized fishing, after putting aside the expenses for food, ice
and fuel, the catch is divided equally between the owner of the fishing
equipment and the workers. In lagoon fishing, according to the traditional
system, one-third of the production goes to the fishers and two-thirds for the
proprietor of the gear when he participates in the fishing.
The marketing system has been modified greatly in the last few years with the
proliferation of companies that buy the yield from the fishers through the fish
vending posts. In some cases, the role of the middlemen remains important,
although this region is home to success cases in the operation of co-operatives.
Organization of Fishworkers
In the southeast/southern region there are approximately 180,760 artisanal
fishworkers, of whom half are members of the colonias. Santa Catarina and
Rio de Janeiro have the maximum number of artisanal fishworkers in the
country (Table 6).
The main problems in the region relate to conflicts with industrial fishing,
which infringes into the coastal areas and estuaries; invasion by the tourism
industry and purchase of land on beaches and areas where artisanal fishing is
carried out; environmental deterioration due to the presence of large industrial
centres; and the lack of organization of the fishworkers.
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7. SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
OF ARTISANAL FISHWORKERS
7.1
ARTISANAL FISHING INSTITUTIONS
Artisanal fishworkers are organized into ‘colonias’, similar to the Iberian guilds,
created at the beginning of the century by the Brazilian Navy. The objective
of the creation of these colonias was to organize the fishworkers spread out
along the coast as reserves for the Navy. The directors of the colonias are
elected by the fishworkers who are legal members, and they, in turn, elect the
president of the Provincial Federation. The president of the National
Confederation was personally nominated by the Agriculture Minister, to which
the fishing sector was institutionally attached until 1989.
Until the 1988 Constitution, a majority of the directors of the colonies were
representatives of other social and professional sectors, such as fish traders
and lawyers who utilized the fishworker organizations for political purposes.
In 1973 a new statute was established for the colonias, but no substantial changes
occurred as this new law was promulgated during the military regime and
there was no consultation whatsoever with the fishworkers.
At the beginning of the 1980s, for the first time, the artisanal fishworkers of
Pernambuco in the northeast region organized mass meetings against the
environmental degradation of the rivers and estuaries, caused by the large
sugarcane mills. The movement to re-democratise the country, towards the
end of the military dictatorial regime, had an important influence on the
democratisation of the electoral process, principally in the northeast, where
the Pastoral dos Pescadores (Pastoral of Fishworkers), created by the
Conferência Nacional dos Bispos de Brazil (National Conference of Bishops
of Brazil), played an important role. After 1986, the Movimento pela
Constituinte da Pesca was organized, where, for the first time, the artisanal
fishworkers could put forth their demands to the National Congress: these
dealt with the right to free and democratic association, an end to fiscal incentives
for industrial fishing, labour rights, recognition of women’s work, development
programmes, control of environmental degradation, and so on.
In 1989, with the declaration of the Constitution, the Movimento pela
Constituinte da Pesca phased out, but MONAPE, the national fishworkers’
movement, was created, with a base among the artisanal fishworkers of the
country. The main challenge for MONAPE is the stimulation of an
independent and democratic organization of artisanal fishworkers, seeking to
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SAMUDRA Monograph
maintain the rights earned by the 1988 Constitution and fight for new social
and labour rights. MONAPE has organized various national meetings of its
members, also inviting representatives from organizations of fishworkers from
neighbouring countries, like Conapach, in Chile. MONAPE is active only in
the northern regions, where it has its base, and in some States of the northeast.
Unfortunately, in the 10 years of its existence, MONAPE has not succeeded
in establishing itself as a national movement capable of offering alternatives
to the existing institutional framework that, as mentioned before, is marked
by protectionism and the lack of clear and effective policies favouring artisanal
fishing.
Until the Constitution of 1988, fishworkers were allowed to organize
themselves only into the traditional colonias, whose role was mainly one of
social service. The new constitution allowed fishermen to create their own
trade unions, although few of these unions were established effectively. In
the 1980s, the Pastoral de Pesca, linked to the Catholic Church, began the
work of securing for fishworkers the rights extended to other workers, such
as retirement benefits. Today it is possible for fishworkers to subscribe to
schemes of the National Institute of Social Security, as autonomous workers
who pay a contribution until retirement at 60 years for men and 55 years for
women. They can, according to the Organic Law of Social Security, apply for
retirement on grounds of health problems, health benefits and maternity
allowances. In the regions that suspend fishing activity for some months for
the regeneration of species, the fishermen associated to the colonias receive an
allowance as compensation for the fishing holiday.
According to Barbosa, Lima and Maneschy (2000), the inclusion of
fishworkers in the ‘special insurance’ category of pensions and social security
can be considered a major victory for the fishermen’s social movement.
Provisions such as these mean that men can receive pensions and other benefits,
which, though limited, are part of any citizen’s rights. Also important is the
unemployment insurance for riverine and inshore fishers, though this has been
restricted to those places where ‘closed areas’ have been instituted for the
reproduction of fish stocks.
7.2
THE ROLE OF WOMEN
In different regions of Brazil, mainly in the northeast and the north, women
have traditionally participated in fishing as marisqueiras (shellfish collectors),
pescadeiras (fishing along the seashore) and in the processing of fish, both in
the artisanal and industrial fisheries.
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Until the1988 Constitution, women were not legally permitted to work in
fishing, due to the fact that it was considered a male activity. Before this, the
SUDEPE only allowed women to work as collectors of shellfish or algae. It
was only in 1988 that a Presidential Act abolished the prohibition on female
labour in fishing.
In spite of such legalisation, women rarely participate in deep-sea fishing, as
the fishermen consider that their presence in the boat brings bad luck (‘panema’).
This situation is slowly changing and in some States of the north and northeast,
some women work with their families in small-scale fishing. There are also
cases of widows who work alone on artisanal fishing boats. Some of these
women are now even presidents of fishworker colonias, but these are still isolated
cases.
The majority of women work as marisqueiras, collecting shellfish during the
tide and selling them to supplement the domestic income. In some States of
the northeast, like Bahia, the marisqueiras, around 20,000 in number, participate
actively in the domestic earnings. In States such as Maranhão, women
participate in fishing “on foot” with small shrimp nets. The shrimp is brined,
dried and sold by the women. This activity is also common in other States of
Brazil.
In some fishworker communities the women’s activities consist of weaving
and darning fishing nets. In many other communities, women work in smallscale agriculture, producing yucca flour, which is the basic diet of the coastal
populations.
Urban industrial employment is another field where women are active
participants, working mostly in the fish-processing industry. In many cases,
the workforce in the industry is almost entirely female.
According to Barbosa, Lima and Maneschy (2000), in the northern region,
women participate in fisheries in various ways: they fish in shallow waters
close to home though they do not fish at all when pregnant or menstruating,
giving in to social and cultural pressures. Most of the times the product is
meant for sale, as is the case with shellfish harvesting in the mangrove swamps
and beaches. But sometimes it is used for domestic consumption and
distribution among a network of relatives. Among other activities related to
fisheries, women engage in the making of fishing gear and in fish processing.
The absence of regular buyers, low prices and delays in payment are the
common problems they face.
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Women from coastal communities too had a more regular and active role.
Records reveal that in the era of sailboats, fishing used to be carried out much
closer to the land as there were more fish there. With the introduction of
motorboats around the beginning of the 1970s, and with the advent of the
industrial fleet, pressure mounted considerably, making it necessary to go out
much farther into the sea, for longer periods. Thus it became difficult for
women to participate more fully in open-sea fishing.
Women who continue to take an active part in fishing are still accorded the
status traditionally given them. Their activities are viewed as ‘support’ for the
running of the household. A majority of the colônias follow the traditional
sexual division of labour. The ‘double-workday’ of women continues to be
thought of as ‘part-time activity’. A woman involved in the administration of
the colônias is still considered a little ‘out of place’.
The State of Pará has been witness to a new trend over the past five years.
Over 10 per cent of the registered members of the colônias there are women.
They are seeking alternatives to traditional set-ups like the colônias. Several
women’s associations have mushroomed where women hold positions of
importance.
There have been several motivating factors behind this new beginning. The
attempt to generate income, and explore alternative avenues to do so, is one
important reason why women have united to form associations. Government
programmes and the initiatives of non-governmental bodies directed at small
producer groups have also influenced these women’s organizations. Groups
that already existed in the community–mostly linked to the Catholic Church,
like Mothers’ Clubs or Grassroots Ecclesiastical Communities–are
enthusiastically supporting these new associations. Where the colônias have
opened up and admitted women, integration has followed naturally. Once
groups are formed, the exchange of ideas and access to new social spaces has
meant a reconsideration of traditional roles. Such groups tend to follow
examples set by other organizations that have been successful in welcoming
women into their fold (Barbosa, Lima and Maneschy, 2000).
The role of women in fishing was highlighted in the 1990s by the Pastoral da
Pesca, MONAPE and by NGOs such as Terramar, with the support of the
International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (Maneschy. M, 1999), who
organized specific meetings to discuss the problems and the potential of women
in fishing.
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8. COASTAL COMMUNITIES, TRADITIONAL
KNOWLEDGE AND MANAGEMENT
The coastal ecosystems of Brazil present not only a remarkable biodiversity
but also a variety of human cultures. In the southern coast, between Rio Grande
do Sul and Santa Catarina, live the Azorian, descendants of the migrants who
came from the Azores Islands in the 17th century. In the first generations they
were both peasants and fishermen, but from the late 1940s they have
concentrated mainly on fishing activities. Close to the Azorians, appear the
Caiçaras, who live between Paraná and the State of Rio de Janeiro. They are
descended from the Indians, Portuguese colonizers and African slaves, and
practise small-scale agriculture associated with artisanal fishing. In the northeast
coast, from Bahia to Fortaleza, live the jangadeiros, raft fishermen who depend
almost exclusively on artisanal fishing using the jangada, a raft with sails that
is very suitable for the type of sea, wind and sandy coast of the area.
8.1
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE TRADITIONAL
KNOWLEDGE OF ARTISANAL FISHERMEN
The different coastal cultures in Brazil have a set of knowledge and
management practices associated with the sea and fishing activities. In recent
years, researchers have emphasized the importance of the knowledge produced
and orally transmitted by traditional fishermen, and the potential role traditional
fishing and related environmental knowledge can play for the development
and implementation of fisheries management in the modern world (Ruddle,
2000; Cordell, 2000). As Ruddle (2000) points out, traditional knowledge
continues to guide and sustain the management of many traditional,
community-based fishing systems as well as governs fishing decisions and
fishing strategies. Local knowledge systems are empirically based and designed
for practical purposes, for example, to inform decision-making about where
to fish daily and seasonally. Local environmental knowledge domains
characteristically include much valuable information about fish behaviour,
location, distribution and availability of species, taxonomies and habitat
classifications. Over time, as this knowledge is transmitted to new generations
of fishers, it helps communities maintain and constantly renew ties to fishing
grounds and access to a continuous supply of marine aquatic resources,
particularly in tropical countries where biological data are scarce or nonexistent.
Spheres of local knowledge range from references to classification of aquatic
species, fish behaviour, taxonomy, patterns of reproduction and migration of
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fishes, and feeding inter-relationships among species, to physical and
geographic characteristics of the aquatic habitat, climate (cloud formation,
winds, storms, weather change), principles of navigation and functioning of
diverse fishing techniques in a range of micro-environments. Traditional
knowledge may also reflect people’s association and connections with the
spiritual world, for example, demarcation of sacred sites in the sea, creation
myths and story places.
a) Areas and Subjects of Traditional Knowledge
Various maritime anthropology and ethno-ichthiology studies illustrate the
richness and resilience of artisanal fishing knowledge in Brazil. Glaucia Silva
(1997) records the analytical categories of the fishers of Piratininga (Rio de
Janeiro), while Begossi (1989) documents the species nomenclature and criteria
for fish classification system fishermen use on Búzios Island, (São Paulo).
Cunha and Maldonado (1989) have described how fishing knowledge operates
among artisanal communities and fishermen in Paraná and along the Paraíba
coast. Diegues (1983, 2000) explains how traditional knowledge functions in
the rocky fishing grounds of Rio Grande do Norte and Espírito Santo States.
Forman (1970), Cordell (1983), Mourão (1991) and Marques (2001) have
made important contributions to the study of traditional knowledge in Brazil.
Thus, traditional fishing knowledge may be understood as a distinct cognitive
realm: on the one hand, consisting of a replicable, orally transmitted set of
specialized skills and culturally shared practices and beliefs that have stood
the test of time, enabling people to make a living from coastal and marine
environments, working from small boats and relying on artisanal techniques;
on the other hand, traditional fishing knowledge exists in more encompassing
symbolic and conceptual frameworks governing social relationships and
spiritual connections to inland aquatic, coastal and offshore marine habitats.
It can also be defined as a cumulative body of knowledge and beliefs about
the relationship of living beings (including humans) with one another and
their environment, handed down through generations by cultural transmission
(Berkes, 1993).
Some areas and subjects of traditional fishing knowledge are:
Fish Taxonomies
In some Brazilian fishing communities, fish have a great importance in native
classification, being most meticulously classified into categories built upon
multiple criteria. This deference to fish is made clear by the use of the ‘family’
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category, which is meticulously applied to fish while receiving quite casual
application in the case of other animals and especially plants. This special
treatment given to fish should be seen within a set of conceptualizations that
approximate them to man since both form the articulation between land and
sea.
Habitats Classification
In addition to species of fish, certain rocky fishing grounds are classified and
designated by the names of the fishermen who discovered them (Galvão,
1968; Diegues, 2000). Some of these rocky habitats are very rich in fish species
and were kept secret by their ‘owners’. These territories have no visible markers
or borders, but are respected by other fishermen. Local sea tenure systems are
based on long-established knowledge traditions containing detailed information
on ecological features of the sea territory.
Cunha (1997) highlights the relationship fishermen perceive between physical
characteristics of the ocean and the social production of knowledge. According
to Cunha, fishing knowledge is culturally produced and accumulated through
professional practice and continually recreated according to the features of
the maritime environment, which presents itself as cyclic, mobile and
unpredictable. In other words, the appropriation of the sea and its resources
is expressed in the principle and practice of “knowing-how” marine territory
is constructed and ritualized by means of tradition, apprenticeship, experience
and intuition. This knowhow is only attainable by those with experience and
intuitiveness, which come from understanding what tradition is in specific
cultural and work/production contexts of fishing apprenticeships.
Fish Behaviour
Detailed feeding habits are described by fishermen (Marques, 2001) in Marituba
lagoon at the mouth of São Francisco River in the State of Alagoas. Local
fishermen describe fishing habits of many species, and use their knowledge
to select appropriate baits. Knowledge of feeding and reproductive behaviour
is also used to organise fishing activities. As an example, during the first rains,
when fish makes noise (“snores”), this means they are ready to spawn; thus it
is time to prepare fishing traps (covos).
Marques (1991) has studied the caiçaras, a brush park used in the coastal lagoon
of Mundaú and Manguaba, in Alagoas, from an ethno-ichthiological point of
view. He observes that fishermen distinguish fish that live in the caiçara more
or less permanently, such as the mero (Epinephelus), carapeba (Eugerres brasilianus),
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camurim (Centropomus sp) and caranha (Lutjanus cyanopterus), from species that
only temporarily seek shelter in the brush parks, such as the salema (Archosargus
sp) and vermelha (Lutjanus sp).
The movements of fish and their migration patterns are also precisely known
by many artisanal fishermen along the Brazilian coast. A good example
concerns the migration of mullets (Mugilidae) during the winter from Brazil’s
southern coasts to the northern coasts. The first cold winds in May mark the
beginning of the mullet migration. Numerous artisanal communities continue
to rely heavily on this species for their livelihood.
The ability to locate and keep track of fish aggregations is another realm of
fish behaviour known in intricate detail by many small-scale fishermen in
Brazil. Signs of spawning aggregation are identified by ardentia, the scintillation
produced by shoals of certain pelagic fishes (such as sardines) during the
nights without moonlight. This indicates that fishermen should prepare to
deploy their encircling nets.
Ruddle (2000) also mentions that knowledge of predictability of food fish in
prime spots is widespread in traditional fishing societies throughout the tropics.
Calendars, devices and mental maps, which enable fishermen to track fish
behaviour according to lunar phases, are among the most critical tools of
possible events in the marine ethnobiology of fishing.
8.2
SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE
KNOWLEDGE
The knowledge systems described above tend to develop within traditional
societies or communities that (a) maintain strong economic and symbolic ties
with the land and the sea through continuous observation of natural cycles;
(b) promote attachment to continual use and occupancy of a specific group
territory, which allows a community to reproduce itself through ongoing
traditions of communal and family land and sea tenure; (c) allow subsistence
activities to continue to play a vital role in fishing, even in conjunction with,
and an increasing focus on, market production; (d) have individual/family
ownership of the means of production; (e) have limited accumulation of
capital; (f) structure crucial socioeconomic relations along family, domestic
and communal kinship lines; (g) use relatively simple technology, with limited
impact on the environment; (h) have sites of marginality from political power
bases that tend to be concentrated in urban centres; (i) have oral traditions
responsible for the production and transmission of knowledge, symbols, myths
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and rituals associated with artisanal fishing and sometimes with small-scale
agriculture; and (l) encourage a certain degree of social/cultural identity based
on fishing and other maritime activities.
Artisanal fishing knowledge should not be judged or seen as pre-logical or
pre-scientific. Silva (1997), following Levi-Strauss (1978), points out that
traditional production and ecological knowledge are based on long observation
of recurrent natural phenomena, which allows a fishermen to make decisions
about the timing of fishing activities, selection of favourable fishing locations
and the use of appropriate techniques for specific species. Without this finetuned knowledge, it would be impossible for fishermen to earn a livelihood
within an ever-changing and frequently dangerous marine environment.
The construction of this body of complex and detailed concepts and symbols
is based on a long-term empirical observation and is applied to rather small
marine areas used by local fisherman, and can seldom be replicated elsewhere.
It also guides their behaviour and fishing strategies, and is essential for
predicting situations where fishing can be successful. In this sense, traditional
knowledge helps local fishermen to produce their own mental maps that
indicate to them where and how to fish.
8.3
SYMBOLIC ASPECTS OF THE SOCIAL APPROPRIATION
OF THE SEA
The social appropriation of the sea implies not only an extension of social
relationships on land and the accumulation of local environmental knowledge.
It also involves the formation and symbolic expression of links with the
spiritual world. Conceptions and representations of the natural world and its
resources differ greatly between subsistence and market-oriented societies.
Godelier (1984) argues that these two societies have different rationales, and
each displays a system of social rules consciously elaborated to best attain a
set of objectives. According to this anthropologist, each economic and social
system creates a specific mode of exploitation of natural resources and use
of the human labour force and, consequently, utilizes specific norms of good
and bad use of natural resources.
According to Godelier (1984), at the heart of our material relationship with
nature, there is an underlying non-material bond that unites the three key
functions of knowledge: to simultaneously represent, to organize and to
legitimize our social relations and our relations with nature. In order to
understand the process of material production, it is essential to understand
the symbols and myths used by fishermen to represent the sea and its beings.
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The production process involved in fisheries generates a range of symbolic
elements through which fishermen act not only upon nature but in concert
with supernatural forces that may favour a successful fish catch or punish
those fishermen who are too ambitious.
Thus, together with defining a space for economic reproduction and projecting
principles of social relations, marine territories can also be the locus of
representations and of the mythological imagination of these traditional
societies. The intimate relation of these people with their surroundings, and
their greater dependency on the natural world when compared with urbanindustrial societies, results in the cycles of nature (the arrival of schools of
fish and the abundance of crops) being associated with mythical and religious
explanations.
Caiçara communities along the southwest coast of Brazil use both the Atlantic
Forest resources as well as associated estuaries, mangroves and marine
environment. They also do not have a fear of fishing in the estuaries and
coastal lagoons, but many fishermen have a dread of the mar de fora (open
sea) and the passagem da barra (going beyond the mouth of the estuary), where
storms might occur, sometimes resulting in loss of boats and human lives
(Mourão, 1971).
Many artisanal fishermen are Catholic, although the number of Protestants
has been increasing in the last decades. In some areas, however, there is a
great influence of the cult of orixás, who follow the Afro-Brazilian religious
tradition.
The most known Catholic centers of pilgrimage in Brazil are located along
coasts and rivers, and have strong relationship with waters. Examples are the
sanctuary of Our Lady of Nazaré, in Belém, where the most impressive
procession, with over 1 mn participants, takes place in October, and when
innumerable signs and symbols of the maritime and fluvial life are shown. In
Salvador of Bahia, our Lord of Bonfim (Senhor do Bonfim) is also the protector
of the seamen, as it is Yemanjá, goddess of the sea in the Ioruba-Brazilian
religious tradition. The black image of Our Lady of Aparecida, protectress of
Brazil, has been taken from the river by fishermen in the 18th century. Along
the southern coast, several churches are dedicated to Our Lady of the Seamen
(Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes). It could be said that although Brazil has
been, until recently, an agrarian country, the sea has a strong influence on
people’s religion.
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The sanctuary of the Holy Lord of Iguape, in the coastal area of São Paulo, is
particularly linked to the maritime life and its dangers, as it is deeply influenced
by the Azorian immigrants who moved to southern Brazil in the 17th century.
The image was found by Indians along the coast and was probably put into
the sea by the Catholic Portuguese when attacked by a Protestant ship in
1647.
Since the 18th century, the Church of Iguape became a centre of important
pilgrimage, particularly of the Azorian immigrants, as they venerated a similar
saint, the Terceira and São Miguel Island, in Azores.
One important element to explain the relationship of the religious behaviour
of the Azorians in Brazil is that they became the most skilled fishermen of
southern Brazil. At the same time, the sea in that region is stormy, insidious
and dangerous for the seamen and fishermen. Even today, most of the wrecks
of fishing boats occur in that sea, and such shipwrecks were even more frequent
in previous centuries (Diegues, 2002).
When fishermen from Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul came in pilgrimage
to Iguape to the celebration of the Holy Lord, they used to bring miniatures
of boats and paintings as payment of their vows to the saint when faced with
danger at sea. Particularly, the paintings show dramatic moments when the
boat was threatened by a storm and was at risk of capsizing. In some of these,
ex-votos fishermen are shown on their knees, praying, and on the top there is
the painting of Bom Jesus de Iguape (Our Lord). When a fisherman himself
was not in a position to make the long trip to the church, which could take a
whole week, he would put a miniature of the boat on the south-north sea
current. He hoped that those who found the small boat would know that it
should reach Iguape in the north, as it was a religious vow (França, 1972).
The maritime ex-votos were frequent until the 1960s, when they became rare
and, in some cases, were replaced by a photo of the boat and its fishermen.
The reasons for this could be the urbanization along the southern coast and
decrease of the traditional religiosity among fishermen. This period also
coincided with the rapid industrialization of the Brazilian fisheries, when larger
boats equipped with radio and sonars were built, resulting in a safer navigation.
In the 1960s asphalted road linked Iguape to Santa Catarina, resulting in shorter
travel by bus to Iguape, putting an end to pilgrimage by boat.
As far as the Afro-Brazilian religious tradition is concerned, one of the most
popular orixás (gods) of the Afro-Brazilian pantheon is Yemanjá, the goddess
of the sea. She is also considered to be the Mother of the fish (Yeye: mother
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and Eja: fish, in Yoruba from Nigeria). The fishermen of Bahia, in particular
those involved in the fishing of cavalla (pesca do xaréu), present their gifts to
Yemanjá before their nets are launched from the shore. According to these
fishermen, those who do not praise the goddess of the sea will have small
catches, as Yemanjá protects the shoals. In the evening of 2 February, coastal
communities, in particular artisanal fishermen, celebrate Yemanjá, and throw
in the sea the gifts she likes, such as soaps, bottles of perfume and silver
coins. Another important aquatic goddess is Oxum, the spirit who protects
the living beings of rivers and water sources (Seljan, 1973).
The religious belief of artisanal fishermen, particularly in the Amazon, is
influenced by Indian mythologies and legends. The popular imagination of
the people of the Brazilian coastal forests, rivers and lakes is inhabited by
magical beings that punish those who destroy the forests (caipora/curupira,
Mãe da Mata, boitatá), those who mistreat animals (anhangá), those who abuse
animals at the time of reproduction (tapiora) and those who fish more than
necessary (Mãe d’Água) (Diegues, 2001). Thus, the inhabitants of the Várzea
da Marituba in Alagoas have various legends, such as the Mãe d’Água (water
mama), which sinks the canoe of those fishermen who are very ambitious
and catch unnecessarily large amounts of fish from the lagoon.
Mythological beings called ataídes threaten those fishermen who use the
mangrove without care in Marajó Island. In the lake Arari, also in the same
island, fishermen say that there is a spirit of a big ray (arraial grande) that
protect other fishes from human predation when they become trapped in small
ponds during the dry season and are an easy prey of fishermen. In order to
fish in those ponds, it is essential to ask permission from the “big ray”, otherwise
the fisherman may risk his life (Fares, 2001).
The mythical world of the caboclo fishermen of the Amazonian rivers and
estuaries is filled with spiritual beings or encantaria of the forest or water,
which can favour or harm him.
The worlds of forest and water are two separated domains: two extensions of
the caboclo’s lives. There are supernatural entities (caruanas, bichos do fundo, animals
of the deep), mãe d’água, the water’s mother) capable of casting spells or
haunting and bewitching those who abuse or disrespect the use-rights and
rules pertaining to these environments. In this case, a belief that one should
not harvest more than one need is reinforced. Like the forest, aquatic areas,
along with their human inhabitants, also have their protective spirits, with the
power to harass those who engage in destructive resource use. There also
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exists the cobra grande (great snake), the Tapiraiauara, and the onça d’água (water
leopard), which inhabit, respectively, the depths of lakes and the rivers (igapós).
Fishermen understand they must avoid fishing in certain places and times for
fear of meeting supernatural entities. It has been suggested that this fearfulness
may act as a mechanism for limiting potentially damaging human-environment
interactions, thus tending to prevent overexploitation of resources (Furtado,
1997).
An ongoing debate surrounds the natural resource conservation function of
these mythological beings: Are traditional fishermen aware of the ecological
intentions of these cultural practices? Can such practices actually facilitate
conservation or be viewed as ‘conservationist’?
Darrel Posey (1992) uses the emic/ethic approach to discuss the issue of
intentionallity related to traditional practices. According to him, in some
conservationists’ minds, traditional practices that limit overexploitation of
resources can be considered to enhance or support biological conservation, in
the modern, scientific sense. Under these conditions, those practices mediated
by beliefs in mythological beings purposely chosen to avoid overfishing may
play an important role in modern fisheries management.
For Posey, this interpretation falls into the category of an ethic approach that
is developed by the researcher. On the other hand, in the mind of a traditional
fishermen (the emic approach), the function of beliefs about the behaviour
of mythical beings may turn out to be something quite different. Fear of being
punished by supernatural beings may function, for instance, to discourage
capital accumulation and social differentiation in societies organized along
egalitarian lines. In this connection, an emic approach to explain these practices
is unlikely to be deliberately ‘conservationist’, at least not in the sense this
concept is defined in Western science.
Inhabitants of many fishing communities in Brazil retain sociocultural affinities
with their Indian ancestors. Indian cosmologies usually do not make clear-cut
distinctions between animals and humans, but see life as a continuum in which
all beings are inter-related through a network of different sociabilities (Descolla,
2000). Nature is not only inhabited by humans and the spirits of the ancestors
but also by animals and their spirits. In this connection, the modern concepts
of wilderness, biodiversity and pristine ecosystems are not able to explain the
complex relationships between traditional communities and their environments.
For example, in the worldview of these communities and cultures, the existing
diversity of species is not only a natural phenomenon but also a cultural one
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resulting from a long-term interaction between humans, habitats and nonhuman beings.
In the Brazilian context, several traditional groups are currently making efforts
to incorporate the modern notion of ‘conservation’ in their discourses in order
to gain the support of ecologists in their struggle for cultural survival.
8.4
TRANSMISSION OF LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
The ability to identify productive zones of the sea and to find one’s bearings
in the midst of the immensity of the sea, out of sight of land, is part of what
has been called the “cognitive skill set of fishermen”, which seems to be a
direct and accumulative result in many fishermen’s communities. This
knowledge is not evenly distributed among artisanal fishermen but tends to
be concentrated in the hands of boat captains and skippers (mestres).
There are various ways to transmit this knowledge set. In the case of the
retrieval of submersed rocky fishing grounds in Galinhos (Rio Grande do
Norte) described by Diegues (2000), the captain may show to his children or
a selected crew member, the geographical signs in the continent he is using
(mountains, church towers) to trace his routing. In other cases, an apprentice
must learn informally through observation and imitating what the captain
does. Instruction to acquire these aspects of fishing knowledge is rarely formal
or consciously intentional.
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9. THE TRADITIONAL APPROPRIATION OF THE
MARINE ENVIRONMENT: SPACE AND SEA
TERRITORIALITY
The concept of traditional appropriation of sea resources incorporates material
as well as non-material aspects that define the relationship between fishermen
and the sea. Modern concepts and tools for managing fisheries usually
emphasize the economic, biological and administrative aspects of regulating
fisheries. On the other hand, anthropological studies of fishing have been
open to broader interpretations of what constitutes resource management in
fisheries. In many cases, anthropologists have documented traditional territorial
systems used to appropriate and manage sea space, which have been found to
have meaningful fisheries management functions and implications. Local tenure
customs that control access to fishing grounds can have management impacts
that are similar to the quota and limited-entry provisions and restrictions
employed in contemporary fisheries management frameworks.
Traditional appropriation of marine resources, in some cases, ends up having
noticeable effects on fishing pressure and production by establishing normative
procedures to control fishery access and activities within socially demarcated
sea spaces. Such cultural practices are basically designed to allow fishing
communities to intervene in nature and in the life cycles and processes of
marine species. In recent years, anthropologists have found this to be an
enlightening way to understand and explain why tenure systems develop and
how they work in many tropical coastal areas, which, in the past, have been
perceived by governments, fishery entrepreneurs and by regulatory agencies
alike as open-access areas. The prevailing wisdom behind the imposition of
most recent fishery management regimes and legislation stems from what is
turning out to be a naive and erroneous assumption about ownership status
of inshore fisheries and coastal sea space, much of which has long been held
and sustainably managed under pre-existing traditional tenure arrangements.
The anthropological and social science literature is now replete with examples
of local fishing traditions that intentionally or unintentionally regulate access
to resources and sea territory, create fishing rights with corresponding social
obligations and that regulate the use and distribution of fishing gear in order
to reduce social conflicts and, in certain cases, to control fishing pressure
itself. Also as Cordell (2000) points out, sea-tenure traditions may include
not only subsistence strategies but reflect basic cultural values, social identity
and a sense of place.
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An outcome of the traditional appropriation of the marine environment and
its natural resources is the establishment of informal sea-tenure systems,
through which portions of the sea, including, for instance, submerged rocky
grounds are allocated to fishermen families. But, as Cordell (2000) points out,
sea-tenure traditions include not only subsistence strategies but are also based
on cultural values that are related to the construction and maintenance of a
social identity and a sense of place.
The traditional appropriation of marine environment occurs within a broader
framework of territoriality through which the artisanal fishermen of the
Brazilian coast have marked areas of the sea that ‘belong’ to them by virtue
of their use.
An important element in the relation between traditional populations and
nature is the notion of ‘territory’, which a particular society claims as its own,
and grants to all or to a part of its members, stable rights of access, control
and use for all or part of the natural resources located there, which they desire
or are capable of utilizing (Godelier, 1984). This territory furnishes, first of
all, the nature of humans as a species, but also the means of subsistence, the
means of production and the means of producing material aspects of social
relations, such as kinship relations (Godelier, 1984).
The marine/coastal territory depends not only on the type of physical
environment exploited, but also on the social relations established among those
who use it. For many traditional populations that exploit the marine
environment, the sea has its marks of ownership, generally productive fishing
spots, discovered and guarded carefully by artisanal fishermen. These marks
can be physical and visible, as it occurs in the caiçaras (brush parks) constructed
in the lagoon of Mundaú and Manguaba (in Alagoas). They can also be
invisible, as in the case of submerged rocks where there is an abundance of
fish stocks. These fishing spots are marked and guarded, and kept secret
through a system of navigation locally called caminho e cabeço by the fishermen
of the northeast. For members of traditional artisanal fishing communities,
the marine territory used is much larger than that of the land, and is more
fluid. Despite this, it is conserved by a lei do respeito (law of respect) that
governs the ethics of the community (Cordell, 1983).
Knowledge of the marine physical environment is extremely important for
safe navigation, for the use of appropriate gear and for the identification of
certain fish species. Among Brazilian artisanal fishermen, the marine
environment is not uniform but is formed by different micro-habitats that
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include mangroves, lagoons, estuaries, sand and rocky grounds. Some fish
species are known to use different micro-habitats for different purposes, such
as feeding, protection and reproduction. In some cases, some micro-habitats
must ‘rest’ when some others are used for fishing (Marques, 2001).
Despite the numerous advantageous uses noted here of artisanal sea-tenure
systems, this is not to say they present a panacea for overcoming all fisheries
management problems; fishing may become highly competitive and, arguably,
as a work setting, it seems to have an inherent tendency to generate conflict.
The act of appropriating and controlling access to local sea space and resources
by no means renders work environments or the natural environments—even
those of small-scale fishing—free of conflict.
9.1
EXAMPLES OF SEA TENURE AND TRADITIONAL
MANAGEMENT SCHEMES ON THE BRAZILIAN COAST
Traditional management by artisanal fisheries is closely linked to coastal
(lagoons, estuaries, mangrove, etc.) and sea tenures. Sea tenure regulates the
access of fishermen to coastal/sea spaces. Traditional management is a set of
customary regulations that regulates fishing itself, that is, the amount and
type of fish to be caught, with the goal of maintaining the reproduction of
natural resources and the fishermen’s communities. It is based on a deep
knowledge of the physical and biological characteristics of habitats and living
resources. There are no written laws but orally transmitted regulations passed
from generation to generation. Very often they are loaded with myths and
social symbols. The transgression of these regulations is met with social
disapproval and loss of respect.
The following are some examples of sea tenure and traditional management:
Caiçara Brush Park
This is a brush park built with mangrove poles in the form of a circle or a
rectangle. Inside it the artisanal fishermen lay branches, similar to the akadjás
of west Africa It is not yet known whether this technique was brought from
west Africa by the African slaves or developed locally. Caiçaras are mainly
used by the fishermen of Mundaú-Manguaba lagoons in the State of Alagoas.
They are settled in shallow places with weak water currents. Fishermen have
a profound knowledge of the fish species that are caught in the brush parks.
The fishermen also have a good perception of the caiçara as an artificial habitat
created by them. The ecological succession is also noticed: first comes the
macroalgae (cabelo), then the perifiton (limo), the Terrinidae (buzame), Mytella
charruana (sururu) and the Crassostrea rizophorae (ostras). Each stage is associated
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with a specific fauna. When the climax is obtained, the fishermen start fishing
in the caiçara with nets (Marques, 1991).
Summarizing, the caiçaras are:
(a) a system of sea tenure: Local fishermen consider the caiçaras as their posse and
territory. Access to the newly created habitat and its resources is determined
by the law of respect (lei do respeito). As the fishermen say, “We cannot forbid
other fishermen to fish in the caiçaras, but they respect our place as we respect
theirs.”
(b) a unit of resources: The fishermen have an idea that the caiçara concentrates
biomass.
(c) a fish aggregating device: Fish species find a new habitat and a feeding place in
the caiçara. Local fishermen say that “fish go to the caiçara to get protection.”
(d) a fisheries management technique: Local fishermen utilize these new habitats in
a responsible way, using appropriate nets that catch only adult fish. In a broad
sense, the caiçara can also be considered an extensive aquaculture technique.
The brush parks of Alagoas State, however, are now suffering from the overall
degradation of the Mundaú-Manguaba lagoons. Tonnes of wastes from
sugarcane alcohol production are being discharged into the lagoons. The
urbanization of the State capital, Maceió, is also responsible for the overall
degradation of the estuarine area, and contributes to the disruption of the
fishing communities. As local fishermen say, “Outsiders who are not local
fishermen lack respect and take fish from our caiçaras in the night.”
Cercos and Currais (Large Fishing Traps)
These are fixed traps built in many estuaries and lagoons all along the Brazilian
coast. They were first built by the Indians to catch migratory species such as
mullet. They are made of local material such as bamboo poles. They have one
entrance that allows only big fish to get in, as the small ones escape through
the fence. The owner of the cerco rebuilds it every two years when the bamboo
poles decay, and when it is abandoned, another fisherman can build his own
cerco. No other fisherman will dare to take fish from somebody else’s trap as
long as the law of respect prevails. At present, however, many intruders, mainly
recreational fishermen, fish in the cercos.
Restricted Access to Fishing Grounds
According to Brazilian law, fishing is open to all fishermen registered in
fishermen’s guilds (colonias). However, in some places, local communities have
reserved specific areas for the use of their fishermen. That is the case, for
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example, of the Restinga of Pobeba, in Sepetiba Bay near Rio de Janeiro,
where traditional fishermen expelled large trawlers that came from outside to
fish in their area. Artisanal fishermen used only small nets to catch shrimp
and felt that their fishery was being damaged by industrial boats from large
companies. Today the area is used only by the traditional community as the
trawler owners are afraid of entering into the restricted area and being attacked
by the canoes.
The Caminho e Assento Fishing of the Northeast
Caminho e assento is a fishing system in which the fishing ground is discovered
and pinpointed in the ocean through a complex method of mentally
constructed reference points. The fishermen use no compass but still, through
crossing imaginary lines (caminho), and taking for reference geographical
landmarks such as the tops of mountains in the continent, they are able to
locate small fishing grounds made of rocky bottoms (cabeços) several miles
away from the continent. These fishing grounds are ‘owned’ by the boat captain
or skipper who discovered them. Other fishermen do not know where these
grounds are located. Some boats might follow the lucky owner of the fishing
ground but when the skipper becomes aware of this, he changes the route.
After some years, some of these productive fishing grounds might be made
public but retain the name of the skipper who discovered them. The secret
location of the cabeços is handed down by the father to his children.
The segredo (secrecy), based on traditional knowledge, is a sign of the authority
of skippers over the other fishermen. The more cabeças he discovers and keeps
secret, the more fish the skipper can land and the more respect he gets within
his community. As a fisherman from Galinhos (Rio Grande do Norte) points
out, “The sea has plenty of marks that nobody sees.” The caminho e cabeço
demonstrates territoriality, and functions also as a means of controlling the
availability of scarce sea resources in the northeast.
Viveiros (Aquaculture Ponds) in the Estuaries
One method to increase fish productivity in the northeast is the construction
of viveiros in the inner parts of the estuaries. As mentioned earlier, estuarine
water bodies belong to the State, but, in some cases, are appropriated by local
fishermen through the viveiros. They are built by closing of part of the estuary
through a barrier of wood and clay. Only one gate is left open during the
rising tide, through which salty water enters the enclosed area, also bringing
along small fish and shrimps. The viveiro is owned by those who build it. The
number of viveiros has decreased in the region because of the expansion of
sugarcane plantations and the increasing pollution by the dumping of alcohol
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production waste, as well as due to urban expansion. The viveiros are also a
type of extensive aquaculture.
9.2
THREATS TO TRADITIONAL MANAGEMENT
In the case of Brazil, traditional sea tenure and fisheries management are only
now receiving some attention from scholars, scientists and fisheries managers.
One reason for this lack of interest is that vast areas of the Brazil, such as the
Amazon and the sea, were treated by powerful industrial and urban elites as
‘empty spaces’. The traditional populations of Amazon, particularly the Indians
and the riverine populations, were ‘invisible’ until recently. This ‘invisibility’
served the ideological purpose of the elites of occupying the Amazon, as
only ‘uncivilized people’ were living there. The same biased view was applied
to artisanal fishermen and their communities. When these populations started
to react to outsider intrusion, often by force and near-wars, they became
‘visible’, along with their rich culture and knowledge of ecosystems and
management techniques.
Artisanal fisheries today face strong competition from the so-called modern
fisheries and from the destructive exploitation of the coast. Local fisheries
are being flooded with large industrial boats using inappropriate gear. Social,
spatial and technological competition is taking place between locals and
outsiders. Since 1967, industrial fishing has been established using tax
incentives and suspension of import tariffs on fishery technology. These
incentives have benefited mainly industrial groups. The result of this ‘fishery
modernization’ has been widespread destruction of fish habitats, overfishing
and marginalization of artisanal fishermen
At the same time, from the 1960s onward, uncontrolled use of land and sea
resources reached a critical intensity. Large chemical and petrochemical plants,
nuclear power stations, dredging of harbours, oil exploitation, coastal mining
and tourism have threatened extensive areas along the Brazilian coast. Urban
expansion and tourism have targeted biologically rich habitats such as
mangroves, sand barriers and islands. One of the most affected ecosystems
are the mangroves, from which an estimated two-thirds of the fish caught in
Brazil feed or breed during their life cycles.
In addition to these impacts on artisanal fisheries, there has been a dramatic
increase in the demand for fish in the growing urban centres. Fishing has become
increasingly selective and some valuable fish species such as shrimp and
lobsters were more intensively exploited. When profitability of industrial fishing
decreased, most of the industrial fishing crew started exploiting fish resources,
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with no respect for existing traditional regulations. In some cases, artisanal
fishermen started using the same forbidden fishing gear in order to survive.
In many cases, traditional management techniques have been abandoned as a
result of the impact of the activities described earlier as well as because of an
increasing disruption of the fishing communities.
Traditional sea tenure is also threatened everywhere, not only by so-called
modern activities but also by ill-conceived environmental and aquaculture
plans that, in principle, should benefit artisanal fishermen. Government
institutions are encouraging aquaculture but very often, traditional extensive
aquaculture systems already used by artisanal fishermen are not considered.
As a result, in some cases, capital owners and outsiders are the only ones who
benefit from these initiatives. The government also promoted the cultivation
of species already managed by artisanal fishermen. The adoption of these
techniques does not necessarily lead to an improvement in the well-being of
local communities. The government, for instance, planned to introduce mullet
cultivation through floating nets (cercos flutuantes) instead of supporting the
existing technique of the traditional cerco made of bamboo poles. In fact, floating
nets are more capital-intensive and less labour-intensive, and would disrupt
the existing social organization. In the end, the new technique was eventually
rejected by the artisanal fishermen.
Another threat exists when environmentally protected areas are planned and
established. Some of the coastal national parks are being set up in areas
traditionally used by artisanal fishermen. The well-conserved areas of the
Atlantic Forest and associated coastal system have been used by traditional
communities for centuries. Due to their isolation as well as to the existing
social structure of these communities, those areas remained well conserved.
However, due to existing legislation, the traditional population cannot live in
the regions that became protected and have to be transferred to other areas.
Highly conflictive situations are being created in almost all protected areas,
and local communities resist eviction from their traditional land (as is the
case in the Ecological Station of Juréia, the Biological Reserve of
Guaraqueçaba, etc.). When eviction of traditional peoples occurs,
environmentally protected areas are more easily invaded by commercial fishing
and logging interests, and the overall situation becomes even worse.
Instead of using traditional knowledge, some environmental agencies are, in
fact, destroying a suitable basis for environmental and social planning. The
present situation is gradually changing in favour of traditional communities,
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particularly due to the fierce resistance of the traditional peoples of the
Amazon. Rubber tappers and Indians succeeded in convincing the federal
government to create extractive reserves through which the traditional use of
forest products is ensured. Other traditional populations of the coastal areas
are now requesting the same treatment to be granted to the rubber tappers.
Now the concept of extractive reserve is, by law, applicable to other ecosystems
where local population live out of extractive activities, such as oyster and
mussel extraction.
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10. SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND INSTITUTIONAL
ARRANGEMENTS FOR COASTAL MANAGEMENT
Since the middle of the 1970s, public concern for coastal conservation has
gathered momentum in Brazil. Some of the factors that explain this rising
concern are:
(a) The growing awareness of the Brazilian society of the ecological importance of
the coastal area and on the increasing degradation of its ecosystems. The
position of the Brazilian government at the Stockholm Conference in 1972
that “Brazil welcomes polluting industries” has changed since then, because
of the pressure of NGOs, international institutions and mainly because of
the growing awareness of the population concerning environmental issues. In
the 1970s, despite the presence of an authoritarian military regime favouring
industrialization at any social or ecological cost, many environmental groups
were created. In the last years of the military regime (until 1984), national
campaigns were organized by environmental movements on issues such as
the destruction of the Amazon and Atlantic Forests, the Pantanal, pollution
in urban centres (such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro), and the establishment
of nuclear plants along the coast. Hundreds of small groups blossomed to
oppose whale hunting, tree cutting in urban areas and destruction of national
parks. Although many of these groups, formed by the middle class, were urbanbiased, they were instrumental in raising the level of environmental awareness.
They succeeded in electing a few representatives in the State legislatures of
the more urbanized States such as São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande
do Sul. In 1986, some candidates with strong environmental concerns were
elected to the National Congress that developed the 1988 Constitution. And
for the first time, specific considerations of the conservation of coastal
ecosystems were included in the Constitution.
In the Cadastro Nacional de Instituições Ambientalistas–Ecolista, a roster published
by WWF/Mater Natura, there are 1,400 registered environmental NGOs
(ENGOs), of which 296 were created in 1991-1992. Around 6O of them, or
14.7 per cent, deal exclusively with coastal/marine ecosystems. If 504 ENGOs
dealing with the Atlantic Forest are added, one could say that around 61 per
cent of the Brazilian ENGOs are, in one way or another, concerned with the
conservation of various marine ecosystems. A large group (30 per cent) is
located in the northeast
Of the ENGOs dealing exclusively with coastal/marine ecosystems, there
are those some that deal with species or ecosystems conservation, such as
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SOS Mata Atlântica (Sao Paulo), Tamar (Bahia), which protects turtles, and
Peixe-Boi (for manatee in Pernambuco), Projeto Mamíferos Marinhos da Bahia
and Clube de Observadores de Aves (Rio Grande do Norte). There are also
socially oriented ENGOs, dealing specifically with traditional populations
and their environment, such as Terramar, Sociedade Civil Mamirauá, Sociedade
Civil São Sebastião Tem Alma, Fundação Josué de Castro, etc.
A socially oriented environmentalism gained importance vis-a-vis the traditional
environmentalism that was interested mainly in species protection. This new
environmentalism was able to establish alliances with other social movements,
political parties and local movements.
(b) The increasing number of public institutions dealing with environment
conservation. By the end of the military regime, a public space had been
opened for environmental issues. Secretariats for the environment were
established in many Brazilian States. At the Federal level, SEMA, the Special
Secretariat for the Environment, was created in 1973, and later, in 1992, the
Ministry of the Environment was designated as the core agency for
environmental protection.
(c) The importance of the environment was also highlighted by a growing
number of university and government research centres. Well-known oceanographic
institutions, such as the Oceanographic Institute of the University of São
Paulo, the Undergraduate Course on Oceanography in Rio Grande, Labomar,
in Fortaleza, Labohidro in São Luís, and the Schools of Fisheries Engineering
in Recife and Fortaleza have contributed to increased knowledge on coastal/
marine ecosystems. Some other research institutions linked to universities,
such as NUPAUB- Research Centre on Human Populations and Wetlands of
the University of São Paulo, have also co-operated in increasing knowledge
about the relationships between local communities and coastal ecosystems.
NUPAUB produced the first inventory on the Brazilian wetlands in 1994,
disseminating knowledge about coastal habitats and their human population.
10.1 THE ROLE OF THE STATE, NGOS AND LOCAL
INSTITUTIONS IN COASTAL MANAGEMENT
Coastal conservation and management became an important issue in Brazil in
the late 1970s and 1980s, when the impacts of industrialization and
urbanization resulted in rapid degradation of the coastal environment.
Artisanal fishermen started a movement in the northeast against the pollution
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of estuaries and rivers caused by the acid waste of the alcohol-producing
distilleries. It was the starting point for a stronger organization of small-scale
fishermen, supported by the Catholic Church and some NGOs. This social
process indicated the emergence of new identities and social awareness among
coastal communities and artisanal fishermen’s communities. These identitybuilding processes often occurred during conflicts that opposed urban expansion
in these communities that often resulted in the expulsion of artisanal fishermen
from their beaches and adjacent coastal waters. In tropical countries, where
warm, sandy and sunny beaches became valuable assets to national and
international tourists, artisanal fishermen and their activities are seen as
obstacles to the free development of market forces. Artisanal fishermen and
local dwellers are resettled into corners of their own beaches, which are then
transformed into tourist resorts. In some other cases, the establishment of
large industrialization projects resulted in high levels of marine pollution, and
destruction of valuable habitats such as mangrove, and ultimately led to the
social disruption of artisanal fishermen communities. In many cases, the social
reaction against these processes led to the establishment of new and politically
oriented social movements of artisanal people, such as Monape.
10.2 THE BRAZILIAN COASTAL AREA MANAGEMENT
PROGRAMME
In the late 1970s, government institutions were created at the federal, State
and municipal levels to deal with environment conservation. The first federal
institution was SEMA, Secretariat for the Environment, created in 1973 and
incorporated by the Ministry of the Environment, and Legal Amazon, created
in 1992. In 1989, IBAMA, the Brazilian Institute for the Environment, was
created and incorporated in the Ministry of Environment. Since the 1970s,
most States have created their own Secretariat for the Environment, and,
more recently, many municipalities are creating their own environmental
institutions. In 1981, the first comprehensive national law on the environment
was promulgated, although the first legislation on environmental issues in
Brazil was established in the 1930s. CONAMA, the National Council on the
Environment, was created, with the participation of governmental agencies
and NGOs, and is responsible for the main policies concerning the environment.
In 1986, CONAMA approved the first legislation requiring environmental
impact analysis for large projects.
The 1988 Constitution has declared the Atlantic Forest and its coastal zone
as one of the five crucial areas for management and sustainable development.
The Brazilian government and NGOs actively participated in the 1992 United
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Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED-92), in Rio
during the various discussions on the issues of coastal/marine environment
that produced Chapter 17 of Agenda 21. The text of the Agenda 21 was
published in Portuguese in 1995 by the Parliamentarian Commission on
Consumer’s Protection, Environment and Minorities of the National Congress.
According to the text of chapter 17, the Governments have agreed on a series
of measures that, if implemented, should lead to the sustainable development
of the world’s coastal/marine areas.
Also, ENGOs such as the National Forum and Monape have participated in
drawing up a Fisheries Treaty, signed by NGOs during UNCED-92. Brazil
also signed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
in November 1982 and ratified it in December 1988. In January 1993, the
Brazilian Congress decreed Law 8.617 by which Brazil defined the 12 miles
of its territorial sea and the 200 miles of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Since 1988, the Interministerial Commission for Marine Resources has
established the Project Leplac to collect geophysical data to define the limits
of the Brazilian EEZ. Through the Revizee Project (1994-1998) to assess
the sustainable potential of marine resources, the same Commission is
surveying the existing biomass and the total allowable catch for each species
in the framework of UNCLOS. In the process, the Commission has established
research agreements with the main oceanographic and other marine institutions
to collect and evaluate the necessary information.
In order to co-ordinate the various research activities on marine resources,
the government established, in 1974, the Interministerial Commission for
Marine Resources (CIRM). CIRM’s main responsibilities are the promotion of
research and the rational management of marine resources. The Commission
was formed by representatives of eight ministries (Navy, Foreign Relations,
Agriculture, Transport, Education, Industry and Commerce, Mines and Energy,
and the Interior) and the Planning Office and the National Council for Scientific
and Technological Development. In 1979, a Secretariat was established
(SECIRM) and was chaired by the Navy.
10.3 COASTAL MARINE PROTECTED AREAS: MARINE
EXTRACTIVE RESERVES
The establishment of protected areas is one of the main government policies
for coastal ecosystem conservation. The creation of protected areas is under
the responsibility of IBAMA and the State Secretariats for the Environment.
There are 28 of these protected areas, covering several coastal and marine
ecosystems such as coastal and oceanic islands/archipelagos, dunes,
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mangroves, lagoons and salt marsh habitats. A recent study on coastal/marineprotected areas has shown that there is a low level of management due to
lack of plans, as well as the absence of legislation enforcement, technical and
financial means and research.
A major reason for the low conservation achievement, however, lies in the
way these protected areas are established, without previous consultation with
user groups and traditional populations, in particular. According to existing
legislation, these groups must be transferred from the places where the
protected areas are to be established. It is known, however, that these
traditional communities have been using these ecosystems with a low level of
impact on flora and fauna, and should be considered as important allies in the
conservation process. As these areas are created mainly by federal and State
agencies, local municipalities are excluded from the decisionmaking and,
therefore, give little support to these important conservation areas.
In recent years, a new category of protected area was established: the marine
extractivist reserve through which a marine area is assigned to the exclusive use
of a certain number of small-scale fishermen. A management plan is agreed
upon by a grassroot institution that assembles the fishermen of the extractivist
reserve. Some six marine extractivist reserves have been officially established
by the National Council of Traditional Populations (CNPT- IBAMA) and
several others are in the process of being created, particularly in the north and
northeast regions (Figure 5).
Employing a framework that restricts access to, and economic uses of, coastal
sea space offers Brazil a way to begin to control the highly destructive, still
basically unmanaged, development of its extensive coastal zone (harbouring
a wide range of habitats of high conservation value, not only coral reefs),
while, at the same time, reinforcing the resource use rights and territorial claims
of local communities to the micro-environments of small-scale fishing.
The marine extractive reserve is essentially an effort to modify and extend the
concept of ‘extractive reserves’, a conservation and sustainable development
framework successfully instituted in the western Amazonian forest (primarily
rubber) economies, to the coastal aquatic and marine domains of traditional
fishing communities (CNPT, 2001; Cunha, 1992; Diegues, 1999, 2001). By
taking into account how environment and society both stand to benefit from
helping the coastal poor secure continuing access to their traditional sea
territories, and livelihood resources, Brazil’s marine extractive reserves are a
radical departure from conventional approaches to setting up and managing
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marine protected areas (MPAs). In the past, most MPAs were established
opportunistically, or, more recently, almost solely on the basis of biodiversity
criteria.
Figure 5
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The marine extractive reserve initiative is exceptionally promising; it has the
potential to unify and reconcile elements that all too often are seen as
incompatible: traditional cultural heritage and cultural resource preservation
needs, sustainable local fisheries, and conservation of marine biological
diversity.
Various provisions of national environmental legislation (namely
Lei No. 9.985/ Article 225 of the Constitution instituting SNUC, Sistema
Nacional de Unidades de Conservação da Natureza, Capitulo III, Art. 14, IV); civil
codes; and international treaties to which Brazil is a signatory (for example,
Articles 8j, 10c,10d of the Convention on Biological Diversity) endorse the
principles on which collectively held marine extractive reserves are based,
along with CNPT’s mission (Portaria IBAMA No. 22 / 2-10-92). However, it
remains to be seen whether protected areas can be implemented and effectively
managed on a scale large enough to have biologically significant impacts. Basic
questions remain concerning the social feasibility and economic viability of
the marine extractive reserve.
To successfully institute a network of marine extractive reserve sites, CNPT
also faces a major challenge in dealing with federal, State and municipal
jurisdictional conflicts, inconsistent policies and legislation across sectors,
and the need for greater institutional co-ordination and co-operation in
managing marine and aquatic resources within the environment sector as a
whole (Cordell, 2002).
10.4 LOCAL EXPERIENCES IN COMMUNITY COASTAL
MANAGEMENT
While coastal management planning and implementation have, in general,
remained technocratic exercises without major impacts, in some areas, coastal
communities are doing their own coastal management. In Ceará, for instance,
local communities are suffering from the invasion of their beaches by land
speculators and tourism interests, and from the overfishing of lobster, mainly
by the industrial fleet and by divers coming from a neighbouring state. Assisted
by local NGOs and research institutions, they have proposed a Coastal Forum,
where the various problems can be discussed by representatives of local
communities, the tourism sector, the industrial fisheries sector and the federal,
State and municipal governments. Within this forum, they have proposed a
management plan for lobster fishing, also in co-ordination with the industrial
fisheries sector. When IBAMA announced that no funds and boats were
available for surveillance of lobster fishing, the communities equipped one
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of their own boats to ensure compliance with the rules that regulate the fishery.
Fishermen who disobey the regulations are first reprimanded and when they
violate the legislation a second time, they are taken to court.
On some beaches, the sale of a plot of land to tourists must be approved by
the community council. In some other coastal communities, such as Pirajubaé
in Santa Catarina, Mandira-Cananéia in São Paulo and Arraial do Cabo in Rio
de Janeiro, extractivist reserves are being built in order to ensure access to
fisheries resources for the members, and limit access to outsiders, especially
sport fishermen. In most of the communities’ initiatives, there is a strong
resource-conservation component, and, as result, they frequently succeed in
getting the support of government and non-government environmental
organizations.
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11. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: THE NEED FOR
ALTERNATIVE POLICIES AND STRATEGIES
One of the most serious constraints for the sustainable development of smallscale fisheries is the absence of government policies for the whole fishing
sector. The only attempt to evolve a strategy for the development of the
artisanal fisheries sector was done by SUDEPE, through the PESCART, the
assistance programme for artisanal fishing, established in 1973.
What has characterized SUDEPE in the last 20 years (1967-87) in relation to
fishing policy is the priority given to the industrial/corporate sector, with a
policy of fiscal incentives established by Decree 221 in 1967. Undermining
the importance of the artisanal sector, SUDEPE opted for the establishment
and strengthening of fishing companies with businessmen who frequently did
not belong to the fisheries sector. This model, which was capital- and
technology-intensive, had mediocre results, and led to the overfishing of the
limited tropical fish resources.
Between 1973 and 1988, artisanal fishing received only 12 per cent of the
equivalent funds invested in industrial fishing through fiscal incentives and
ended up, to a large extent, reduced to being a mere supplier, be it of cheap
labour or of fish production for the fishing companies.
The focus of PESCART was ‘technical assistance’ provided by fisheries
engineers, the majority of whom narrowed the term ‘development’ to mean
new capture and processing techniques. Although limited in scope and results,
PESCART was the only small-scale fisheries programme and was discontinued
when SUDEPE ended its operation in 1988, when its responsibilities were
handed over to IBAMA. This environmental institution was preoccupied only
with fisheries regulations and law reinforcement, leaving aside any strategy
related to sustainable fisheries development and the well-being of fishermen.
One of the few attempts on the part of IBAMA to support artisanal fishing
was the organization of extractive reserves in mangrove forests and estuaries
for the exclusive use of the artisanal fishworkers. But again, there is no clear
policy and funding strategies for the operation of these important extractive
reserves.
In 1998, a Fisheries Department was created under the Ministry of Agriculture,
but its main concern has been with the leasing of foreign boats for industrial
tuna fishing and not with artisanal fisheries. This lack of policy for smallscale fisheries is part of the general neoliberal economic policy of the
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government, through which the market is expected to solve all social and
economic problems.
In spite of the worsening of the economic and social problems of the
fishworker communities, the following positive signs have been noticed in
some States:
•
The creation of departments to promote fishing by the provincial
and municipal governments, thus creating structures more flexible
to solve problems at local levels.
•
The initiatives, although spread out, of some NGOs to organize the
artisanal fishworkers.
•
The movement of the Constituinte da Pesca and the creation of
MONAPE have mobilized Brazil’s artisanal fishworkers around
common issues.
•
Some States have succeeded in the organization of free elections for
posts in the administrative council of the fishworker colonias. These
new councils, free from the influence of individuals not belonging
to the sector, need technical and financial support to design and
implement programmes to promote artisanal fishing and achieve
concrete results in bettering the situation of the fishworkers.
Keeping this in mind, it is necessary to create options that address the local
situation, within the range of the possible use of resources, technology and
organizational forms, keeping in mind the following four criteria:
•
social criteria for the distribution of incomes
•
ecological sustainability
•
effective use of energy
•
economic viability
In Brazil’s present situation, keeping in mind the obstacles in the development
of sustainable artisanal fishing described above, alternative strategies should
be based on:
(1) the creation and the strengthening of new forms of associations of
fishworkers, free from the patronage of the government and its institutions,
like the Ministries of Agriculture, Marine Resources etc.) These associations
(guilds, unions, etc.) must have their councils elected freely, at the local,
municipal, State or national level.
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(2) support to civil associations, such as NGOs, MONAPE and Pastoral da
Pesca as well as to new initiatives such as extractive reserves, local tourism in
fishworker communities etc.
(3) an effort towards the social mobilization of the fishworker communities,
with the objective of regaining confidence in themselves as agents of
development. One of the objectives of this mobilization is the creation of
new leaderships substituting the traditional roles, many a time exercised by
people who are outside the sector, such as traders, councillors, etc.
(4) the expansion and reinforcement of marine extractive reserves as the core
of a new strategy to free artisanal fisheries areas from incursion by industrial
boats and real-estate speculators.
(5) the need to integrate traditional knowledge and management into
contemporary management systems. This integration will foster the actual
participation of fishermen in the planning and implementation of the extractive
reserves. Traditional knowledge, associated with scientific methods, could be
a sound basis for local fisheries management.
(6) a new conception of integrated projects that respects the complementation
of the diverse economic activities carried out by the fishworkers (agriculture,
fishing and artisanal extraction, etc.) Thus, the projects in areas where
traditional complementary relations are maintained will ensure that the fishers
are not solely dependent on fishing. Some experiences in Ceará and São Paulo
show that a co-existence between fisheries and local tourism initiatives may
be successful.
(7) a new conceptualization of ‘technological innovation’, which is not
restricted to fish harvesting, an increase of which can lead to overfishing, but
also to the whole range of activities related to production, processing and
marketing. These innovations must not only be technologically viable, but
must also ensure positive results for all artisanal fishworkers and not only for
the middlemen.
(8) the real participation of fishworkers in the regulation of the use of natural
resources (fish, mangrove vegetation, etc.) The fines imposed on the damaging
parties must be included to benefit the integrated programmes for resource
management controlled by the communities.
(9) marketing systems that involve the substitution of the middlemen, starting
from an analysis of the traditional patronage role they play. Complex marketing
systems should be avoided, such as vertically organized co-operatives. As and
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when possible, direct marketing should be encouraged, above all in communities
close to tourist facilities.
(10) priority for activities strongly linked to fishing, such as mariculture on
the coasts. This, especially in the initial stages, must not be a specialized
activity and must be developed to supplement the income from fishing within
the local environment. Experiences such as the Mandira oyster management
project in Cananéia, shows that the establishment of extractive reserves can
be an important strategy both for production and commercialization in coastal
artisanal communities.
69
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Artisanal Fisheries in Brazil
Written by
Antonio Carlos Diegues
June 2006
Edited by
KG Kumar
Layout by
P Sivasakthivel
Printed at
Sri Venkatesa Printing House, Chennai
Published by
International Collective in Support of Fishworkers
27 College Road, Chennai 600 006, India
Tel: +91 44 2827 5303 Fax: +91 44 2825 4457
Email: [email protected]
http://www.icsf.net
Copyright © ICSF 2006
ISBN 81 902957 5 6
While ICSF reserves all rights for this publication, any portion of it may be freely
copied and distributed, provided appropriate credit is given. Any commercial use of
this material is prohibited without prior permission. ICSF would appreciate receiving
a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source.
The opinions and positions expressed in this publication are those of the authors
concerned and do not necessarily represent the official views of ICSF.
SAMUDRA Monograph
Artisanal Fisheries in Brazil
This study deals with the challenges facing the development of artisanal
fisheries in Brazil. The problems affecting production in the sector are
worsening, due as much to objective factors like environmental degradation
and the destruction of natural resources as to the ineffectiveness of
government strategy. The result is a lack of sustained development of the
sector and a stagnation in the living conditions of the fishworker
communities. Besides attempting an analysis of the situation of artisanal
fisheries in Brazil, this study puts forth some alternative strategies for the
development of the sector. It will be found useful by NGOs, regional and
national organizations of artisanal fishworkers, and anyone interested in
fisheries and fishing communities.
ICSF is an international NGO working on issues that concern fishworkers
the world over. It is in status with the Economic and Social Council of the
UN and is on ILO’s Special List of Non-Governmental International
Organizations. It also has Liaison Status with FAO. Registered in Geneva,
ICSF has offices in Chennai, India, and Brussels, Belgium. As a global network
of community organizers, teachers, technicians, researchers and scientists,
ICSF’s activities encompass monitoring and research, exchange and training,
campaigns and action, as well as communications.
ISBN 81 902957 5 6